


Starting Over in Real Time

by DarbyDoo22



Category: Arrow (TV 2012), The Flash (TV 2014), The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Ben Hargreeves is still dead, Diego isn’t even in the first few chapters, Established Barry Allen/Leonard Snart, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, M/M, Multi, Protective Leonard Snart, Slow burn Klaus Hargreeves/Diego Hargreeves, for now, no worse than Barry/Iris would be so w/e, pseudo-incest I guess
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-17
Updated: 2019-12-08
Packaged: 2020-01-15 16:35:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 28
Words: 37,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18502810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarbyDoo22/pseuds/DarbyDoo22
Summary: Klaus Hargreeves finally gets the love and support he deserves from a family. Who cares if it’s from a group of internationally renowned theives and murderers and not his actual family?OrThe rogues accidentally gain a new member with some weird powers, and even weirder past.





	1. Chapter 1

Klaus wiped the tears from his eyes as he ran out of the Academy. 

“I don’t know why he’s still here” Luther had said, “The apocalypse is over, he can go back to whatever bar we dragged him out of”. 

He threw the front door open, not caring who saw him in such a state. His eyeliner was smudged, judging by the black stain across the back of his hand, and his hair had not been brushed in a while. 

Klaus was just glad he had forgone a skirt today in favour of his leather pants and a plain blue shirt. Skits were much more difficult to run in. 

He could hear Diego calling after him as he passed the front gate, but that didn’t stop him, didn’t even slow him down. Klaus didn’t stop until he got to the bus station halfway across town. 

He stood awkwardly in a line for a bus ticket, looking around every now and then to make sure he hadn’t been followed. 

“A one way ticket to the furthest city this will get me” he told the brunette behind the sales counter, as he handed her all the change he had. 

She looked at him skeptically but took his money anyway, making sure to avoid touching him with her perfectly manicured hand. 

She handed him a ticket, and Klaus was thrilled to see that the bus was leaving in just ten minutes. He was less happy when he saw how long of a bus ride it would be. Five hours of sitting next to a stranger was not ideal, but right now, anything was better than going back home. If the Academy could even be called a home. 

By the time he walked to the platform his bus would be arriving to, it was only another five minutes’ wait. Klaus took that time to scan the group of people waiting for the bus with him, trying to decide who his best option would be for the least awkward next five hours of his life. 

None of them stood out as particularly bad choices, but he eventually decided on a timid looking blonde girl with glasses, a laptop bag clutched to her chest. She looked remarkably average, which was exactly what Klaus was hoping for. 

When the bus arrived, he let about half of the people on before making his way to a seat. As planned, most sets of seats had been filled up by individuals, so he had an excuse to sit with her. 

“Do you mind?” He asked, pointing at the empty seat next to her. She looked up at him from her seat, eyes widening as she seemed to notice him for the first time. 

“Oh!” She exclaimed.

“sorry, go right ahead. I’m not with anyone. I- well, I’m with someone, but I’m not with someone on this bus, and- I’m going to stop talking now, sorry!”She rambled, trailing off at the end. 

Klaus almost felt bad for how embarrassed she looked, her cheeks flushed red and her eyes barely meeting his, but was relieved when she returned to typing away at her laptop. 

The bus left the station not long after that, and a comfortable silence fell over the passengers. 

Klaus let himself relax, telling himself that he was almost outside the city. Almost out of the dead end town that held nothing but sadness for him. 

He closed his eyes trying to get some rest, but the scene from the Academy was still playing out in the back of his mind. 

 

 

Luther had gathered everyone in the living room on the premise of family bonding, but Klaus had known something was wrong from the start. 

The others sat down on couches, chairs, anything comfortable. Klaus had stood, not so accidentally, close to the door. 

“Since we’re all back now and the apocalypse has been stopped, I think it’s time we start going out on missions again” Luther told them. 

There was no tiptoeing around it, no easing into it. Luther wanted them to bring back the Umbrella Academy in full force, just like dear old dad would have wanted. And that was what had pissed Klaus off the most. 

After everything they had been through, after every shitty thing Luther had found out their father had done, he still wanted to continue their father’s twisted plans for them. 

When Klaus mentioned as much, he was met with a hateful glare from Luther. 

“It’s not about what dad wanted Klaus. It’s about actually using our powers to do something useful, something good. I know that’s something you might not understand” Luther had sneered. 

Diego, bless him, had tried to defend Klaus’ honour. 

“You know, Luther, Klaus stopped the apocalypse, so don’tgive us any bullshit about him not using his powers to help.” Diego had countered. 

“All Klaus did was make Ben visible so Ben could stop the apocalypse. I don’t see how that makes him a hero” Luther had answered, rolling his eyes. 

Klaus still wasn’t happy that Luther had brought up their dead brother as if he had any idea what Ben would say about him. Ben had told Klaus that he hated how Luther treated the others, especially Klaus. 

“I don’t know why he’s still here” Luther had said, “The apocalypse is over, he can go back to whatever bar we dragged him out of”. And that had been the breaking point. Luther bringing up his alcohol and drug dependency that had arisen from his powers as if it was all somehow Klaus’ fault. 

Luther would never understand. Would never know what it was like to be literally haunted by every ghost on the planet. To have them screaming at you, begging you to talk to them, to listen to them. 

His dreams started to drift back to the ghosts, back to his training, as their father had called it. 

In his dream, Klaus was back in the cemetery, back in crypt where his father had locked him up as a child, all in the name of science. 

He tried to run, to break out, to scream, but he couldn’t move, couldn’t get away from the ghosts all around him, screaming, clawing at him-

Klaus woke up with a jolt, looking around frantically. The passengers around him looked a bit annoyed, but mostly unnerved by him. 

The blonde next to him had a hand on his shoulder, as if she had tried to shake him out of his sleep. She looked around at the other passengers around them, a soft smile on her face. 

“Everything’s fine people. My boyfriend Dave here had a bit of a rough family life, and sometimes he had nightmares. He’ll be fine but it would help if you weren’t staring at him like that” she lied smoothly. If Klaus didn’t know she way lying, he would probably have believed her too. 

When the passengers settled back down, she turned her attention back to him. 

“Are you okay?” She whispered, presumably to not draw attention to them. Klaus nodded, not sure how to thank her for dissolving the tense situation. 

“I’m Felicity, by the way. What’s your name? I’m assuming it’s not actually Dave, or that would be super weird” she said, and Klaus could tell she was still trying to stop herself from rambling. 

“I’m Klaus, thanks for the save” he said, extending his hand with the ‘Hello’ tattoo on the palm. She stared at the tattoo for a few seconds before finally shaking his hand. 

“Happy to help” she answered with a smile. 

“I know enough people that wake up screaming from nightmares to know what to do” she added, winking as she let go of his hand. 

Who the hell was this woman? How did she know so many people with similar traumas to Klaus that she would know what to do? He wondered, as he slowly pulled his hand back. 

She went back to her laptop, typing in equations, symbols, and all kinds of code Klaus didn’t recognize. 

A few minutes later, she put her laptop away and turned to Klaus. 

“So, what brings you to Central City?” She asked casually, her voice nothing but positive. Klaus shrugged and mumbled something about a fresh start. 

Felicity smiled at him, told him that fresh starts were always good, and proceeded to go on a long ramble about her fresh start in Star city only a few months back. 

Klaus half listened to her story, half thought of what he was going to do once he reached Central City. 

His first stop would have to be a bar, since the last drink he’d had, way back at the Academy, was starting to wear off. He could even see the ghost of an elderly man on the bus, sitting a few seats ahead of his. At least he wasn’t trying to talk to Klaus. Not yet, anyways. 

God he needed a drink, Klaus thought, as he listened to Felicity talk about a friend she had made, some ex-military named John. 

He could tell her story was at least edited, if not partially made up, but he didn’t mind. He needed a distraction from the ghosts that were starting to appear in greater numbers as he sobered up. 

By the time the bus arrived in Central City, it was just starting to get dark out. The city looked almost no different than his home town, if not for being almost double the size. 

The one thing Klaus noticed, as he stepped off the bus and started walking around the streets, was a weird lightning bolt logo that seemed to appear everywhere. It was in coffee shop windows, decorating all the t-shirts at souvenir stores, and even on the front cover of most newspapers.


	2. Chapter 2

The next few hours sped by in an alcohol induced blur. 

Now, Klaus was having trouble standing up straight, hardly able to walk. The last bar he had gotten kicked out of for stealing from had been particularly harsh. His head was still throbbing from getting punched, and that wasn’t even the worst of it. 

No, the worst was the paranoid feeling Klaus had about being followed. Every corner he turned, every street he crossed, Klaus would look back over his shoulder. But he was in too new a town and too drunk to truly tell if someone was following him, even with his years of training. 

Thanks for nothing dad, Klaus thought, not for the first time as he rounded another corner and stopped dead in his tracks. 

Standing in the narrow alleyway, blocking Klaus’ exit, was the bouncer from the bar that had punched Klaus. He turned around to make his retreat, but came face to face with another person he vaguely remembered from the bar. 

“Seriously? You guys are really gonna shake me down for some cash right now?” He asked a little loudly, hoping someone would hear him. 

The two men were getting closer and closer to him, and Klaus was starting to panic. He felt trapped, was trapped realistically, and the alcohol he’d had was not helping. 

“Ben!” He called “where the hell are you when I need you?” 

He saw the two men hesitate, taking a nervous look around. When they saw nothing, they continued to advance on him. It was dark out, but Klaus could see the glint of a knife in one of the thug’s hand. 

Klaus focused, as much as he could in his drunk state, using his powers to connect to the spiritual plane. 

“Come on Ben, I could really use some help right now!” He called, his voice echoing across the two planes of existence. 

The two men paused, turning to each other. 

“Not another one of those freaks” Klaus heard one of them mumble. Rude, Klaus thought, as Ben appeared next to him. 

“Oh thank god” Klaus sighed in relief. 

“That’s all you have to say? Dude, you not only left the academy, you actually skipped town! What the hell man! Diego and Vanya are worried sick!” Ben yelled. 

“Yeah yeah, can we skip the lecture for now? I’m about to get murdered, in case you forgot” Klaus said. 

“Who are you talking-“ one of the men started to ask, but stopped when Klaus’ powers made Ben visible. 

“So that’s your backup? A nerdy kid who can turn invisible?” One of the men mocked. 

“That’s not all he can do” Klaus answered with a smirk. Klaus closed his eyes, the only signal he gave for Ben to use his own powers. 

Klaus kept his eyes closed through the screaming, through the background sounds of bones snapping and blood gushing, only opening them when Ben told him it was over. 

He let out a shaky breath as he took in the scene around him. The two men were lying on the ground, almost unrecognizable under all the blood. Klaus could see a bone sticking out of the arm of the body closest to him. 

Klaus wobbled, leaning against the wall to steady himself. When he was sure he wouldn’t puke from the smell or sight of the scene around him, Klaus sank down, sitting with his back against the wall. 

He was so tired. All he had wanted was to get drunk, and here he was, exhausted from using his powers, sitting in a literal pool of blood. 

He could still see Ben standing beside him, but he knew his dead brother was no longer visible to the rest of the living. 

“So” Ben started “care to tell me why you ran?” He asked, crossing his arms sternly. Klaus rolled his eyes. The intimidation thing so didn’t work for Ben. 

“Just following the orders of our esteemed leader” he answered, voice dripping with sarcasm, and now it was Ben’s turn to roll his eyes. 

“You’ve never listened to a single order Luther, or dad have ever given.” Ben stated, and yeah, Klaus knew that. But this was still definitely Luther’s fault. 

He was about to say as much, when, out of no where, a man cover from head to toe in red leather appeared in front of him. On his chest, was the lightning bolt symbol that Klaus had been seeing all around town. 

“Are you ok?” The man asked, looking Klaus over for any signs of injury. Klaus shrugged, not sure what to do about the apparent superhero of the city. 

“Can you walk?” He asked, his voice soft and comforting. Again, Klaus shrugged, because really, he wasn’t sure if he could walk right now. 

The hero offered him a hand, and Klaus took it, glancing over at Ben quickly. Ben was silently watching the events unfold, going back to his usual routine of following Klaus. 

“Where are you staying? I can drop you off there in a flash” he added, and Klaus could see the hint of a smile underneath his mask. 

The question made Klaus hesitate, because, well, how do you explain to an actual superhero that you planned on spending the night on the streets? 

He must have seen something, some hint of apprehension on Klaus’ face, because the hero sighed. 

“Why don’t you come with me? I can make a few calls and see if we can’t get you some help.” He offered. Had Klaus not been so tired he probably would have taken longer to consider. Probably would have asked Ben what to do. 

But as it was, he had no better options, and talking to someone that only he could see probably wouldn’t go over well. 

“Okay” he agreed. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Ben, who didn’t seem upset by his decision. 

Okay then, Klaus thought, how bad could it be? 

 

It was bad, he decided. Very bad. The hero, who’s power was apparently super speed, had taken him somewhere with his powers. 

The walls and the floor were all a matching off white, and there were computers set up all around the table. In the corner there was a small room that looked better equipped than a hospital. 

It looked a bit too much like a research facility for his liking, but Klaus did feel bad for puking the second he got there. Damn, he thought, Klaus never wanted to experience super speed again. 

“Dude!” Someone had yelled as they walked into the room. “I like, just cleaned up here!” The man looked as out of place in the facility as Klaus felt. 

He had loose long brown hair that came down to his shoulders, and was wearing a Star Wars shirt. 

“Yeah, well, at least you won’t have to deal with the double murder tomorrow” the hero had answered, not actually sounding too annoyed. 

“Yeah, about that. Are we just going to start letting criminals into the building now?” Star Wars shirt asked. 

“Only the best ones” answered a third voice from behind them. 

Klaus jumped, turning around to see an older man in a dark blue winter jacket. Who the hell wears a winter jacket in the summer? Klaus wondered. 

“Seriously? Now is not the time to be breaking into the labs” Star Wars shirt muttered. 

“It’s not breaking in if you were invited, Cisco” the newcomer answered. Stare Wars shirt, Cisco, Klaus mentally corrected himself, rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah, the doors were locked dude. Still counts as a break in” he countered. “Wait, b-Flash, why was he invited?”

The superhero, who’s code name was apparently the Flash, hesitated. As was most often the case, Klaus had no idea what was going on. But for once, he decided to keep his mouth shut. 

“Because I have a particular talent for dealing with new metas” the man in the winter jacket answered. 

Klaus, being as great as he was at keeping quiet, spoke up for the first time. 

“What’s a meta?” He asked, unable to help himself. The three men turned their attention to him. 

“A meta is someone who gained powers when the particle accelerator exploded a few years ago” Cisco explained. 

Damnit, Klaus thought. He left one town full of superheroes only to be in another town full of them. But hold on....

“And what do you mean, dealing with new metas?” he asked the man in the winter jacket, bordering on accusation. The man rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically. 

“Definitely not whatever you’re thinking. That’s more Star Labs’ style.” He answered with a smirk. 

“Hey! In our defence-“ Cisco started, but got cut off.

“I know, the evil speedster made you do it. But still. The Flash was the only one that did anything about it” the man in the winter coat added with a sigh. 

“How do you-“ Cisco began to ask, but this time it was the Flash that cut him off. 

“Look, Cisco. I asked Len to come because our friend here needs a place to stay. If he wasn’t a meta it would be a lot more complicated, but I can’t be caught housing a murdered either way” he explained. 

Cisco’s expression darkened, as he looked back and forth between Klaus and Len. 

Klaus didn’t say anything, didn’t comment on not being a meta, or technically not having killed anyone, thank you Ben. 

“Since when is he ‘Len’?” Cisco asked. Uh oh, Klaus thought. 

Len’s expression hardened, and Klaus knew a good defence mechanism when he saw one. Len was getting ready to lie, to retreat behind some mask that he built for himself, like Klaus would have, except, 

“Since we started dating a year ago” the flash answered, and wow okay, that was not what Klaus had been expecting. 

Judging from the shocked expression on his face, Cisco was having a similar reaction.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! As always, let me know what you think!

Klaus woke up alone, in an unfamiliar bed. It wasn’t unusual for him to wake up in an unfamiliar bed, or an unfamiliar house, anymore that it was to wake up in a bed at all. 

He tried to remember the events of the night before, even something as small as the name and face of whoever had taken him home, but he had nothing, and his head hurt too much to think. 

Shit, Klaus thought, either he’d gotten into something stronger than the few bottles of vodka he vaguely remembered, or he had used his powers last night. Since he wasn’t feeling any of the usual symptoms of withdrawal, he assumed it was the later. 

He looked over at Ben, who seemed anxious. 

“Your friends found out who you are, who we are” Ben told him. With his words, flashes of the night before came back to him. 

The weird superhero, and his even weirder, super villain boyfriend. Being offered a place to stay, at after Ben had killed two people. Shit. 

If they knew who he was, the best case scenario was Klaus being on the streets again. The worst case was honestly a tie between ending up at the Academy again, or his new hosts running their own tests on him. 

He needed to leave, now. Klaus stood up, wobbling a bit. He grabbed on to the bed frame to steady himself. He waited a few more minutes, for the dizziness to pass, before continuing his escape. 

From the bedroom, it was a straight shot down the hall to the front door. As he walked, Klaus passed by the kitchen, the living room, trying not to stop as he wistfully looked around. If he wasn’t Klaus Hargreeves, it would be a nice place for a semi-recovering addict to stay. 

But then again, he thought, as he slipped his shoes on, he might not be on the streets, looking for his next hit of anything and everything, if he didn’t have his powers. 

He opened the door, ready to run, but right in front of him was his host. The weird super villain boyfriend. Shit. 

“Going somewhere, Klaus?” He asked casually. Klaus smile, laughing nervously at the mess he had already managed to get himself into. 

“Well, I’d say I’m just getting out of your hair, but...” he trailed off, gesturing to the man’s mostly bald head.

His host, Leo? Lincoln? rolled his eyes before pushing past Klaus into the apartment. 

Klaus knew he should run, try to leave, but his head was pounding, and at this point, he didn’t think he’d make it out of the building before someone caught up to him. Especially the person whose literal superpower was super speed. 

He followed the man into the kitchen, Ben trailing silently behind him. He watched the man put on a pot of coffee, waiting anxiously for the other show to drop. 

“The two of you made quite a mess last night” he finally said, as he poured two cups of coffee. Klaus continued to wait, arms crossed. 

He wanted to take the coffee that was being offered to him, but his training, and too many years on the streets had made him a bit paranoid. 

“Those men your brother killed, were part of the Santini crime family. If they were to find out what happened...”he trailed off as he took a sip of coffee, letting Klaus’ mind fill in the rest. And there it was. He knew the supposed ‘person who helped those with powers’ was too good to be true. 

“So that’s your plan? Blackmail me into staying here? I’d rather take my chance with getting killed than whatever shit you have planned” Klaus told him. 

His host, kidnapper, whatever he was, frowned at that. What? He didn’t like the sound of his own plan? 

“That wasn’t a threat, it was a warning. Whatever you decide to do, wherever you decide to go, you should know that there’s a target on your back, at least in this city.” He explained. 

Although Klaus wasn’t sure what he meant by ‘whatever you decide to do’. That made it sound like he actually had a choice. 

“If it’s not a threat, what exactly is your plan for me?” He asked, honestly curious. He’d never dealt with a kidnapper who gave someone any choices. 

“My plan, as you call it, is to offer you a job, a place to stay, and, if you want, someone to help you control your powers. 

If your powers start to develop more, with or without help, and your brother Ben starts being more present, I’ll do my best to make arrangements for him too” the man offered. Offered. Klaus was honestly shaken by that alone. 

“What the hell?” Ben asked, as if he were reading Klaus’ mind. “Ask him what he would want in return. There’s no way anyone would offer this if they didn’t get something out of it.” 

Klaus nodded once, not wanting to let on that Ben was there. 

“And what would you want from me? This doesn’t exactly seem like a fair trade.” He asked. 

His face hardened and he set his coffee down. 

“There would be a few conditions” he conceded. 

“No more killings, for one. I have a professional deal with the Flash that guarantees my freedom, as long as no one gets killed.” Klaus had to laugh at that. 

The superhero wouldn’t arrest his boyfriend as long as no one died. A small price to pay, he supposed. 

“Second, no more drugs. I know you started them because of your powers, but it’s not something I can condone.” Well, Klaus thought, that one would be harder than the no killing rule. 

“And of course, wether or not you stay, you can not reveal any secret identities you know about. THAT is a threat” he said, more severity in his voice than Klaus had heard. 

“Okay, but like, what do you want from me?” He asked. The man had given him a few guidelines, but still hadn’t asked for anything. 

“There’s nothing that you could give me. I’m a thief, the best in the city. I am happily taken, and already have a team of superpowered meta humans. I’ll settle for the look on the Santini’s faces when they realize you work with me” he told Klaus honestly. 

“So What do you say? What does Ben say?” He asked, and how the hell did he know Ben was here. 

“He murdered two people for you, I doubt he would leave you alone in a stranger’s house” the man answered, as if he could read Klaus’ mind. 

Klaus looked over at Ben, honestly not sure what to do. 

“This could be your chance to start over Klaus. To have the sort of normal life none of us could.” Ben told him. Klaus smiled at him fondly. 

“Our chance, Ben. I’m pretty sure you were part of the deal” he told him. 

He turned back to his host. 

“You’ve got a deal, Luigi” he told the man as he held out his hand with the ‘hello’ tattoo. The man took Klaus’ hand and shook it. 

“It’s Leonard” he added with a smile. 

 

For the rest of the day, Leonard’s boyfriend, Barry, took Klaus out shopping. He would need some new clothes if he intended to have a job, Klaus had been told. 

“Where exactly am I going to be working?” He asked, as he tried on a pair of skin tight red jeans. 

“Len owns a few properties legitimately, just to keep up appearances, but most of them are apartment buildings. I’m guessing you’ll be working at Saints and Sinners. It’s a bar” Barry told him, as he eyed Klaus’ outfit critically. 

Klaus laughed before he could stop himself. 

“He’s going to let a recovering addict, and alcoholic, work at a bar?” Klaus asked incredulously. 

“Cisco is working on some medication to help block your powers, so you won’t have to rely on drugs. As for the alcohol, all the employees get free drinks, all the time, as long as they are off the clock.” Barry informed him, and, well, that just sounded too good to be true. 

What the hell was with people in this town being so nice? He wondered, as Barry handed him a long, flowing, bright yellow skirt. 

The two of them shopped for a few more hours, and by the end of it, Klaus had a decent wardrobe for the next little bit. He would eventually have to buy a bit more of everything, but didn’t want to rely on others for everything. He still wasn’t sure how to feel about all this charity.

After that, Barry told Klaus that he going to meet the rest of the rogues. Leonard’s team of superpowered people. 

Although, according to Barry, who was currently walking him to the bar Klaus would be working at, they were more like a family than a group of criminals. 

Klaus was still nervous to meet them, and not having Ben around didn’t help. Ben, who said he was checking on the rest of the family, had been gone since this morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was looking up L names that Klaus could call Len, and almost died when I saw Luigi :) 
> 
> Also, I love Ben Hargreeves, too much to not include him in everything, but like it says in the tags, he’s still dead, for now ;)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is mostly introductions, with a bit of Ben at the end... sorry!

Klaus let Barry lead him into the bar, glancing over his shoulder every now and then to see if Ben was back. When he still couldn’t see his brother as he walked in the front door, he deflated a little. 

The bar wasn’t open yet, so only a few of them were currently there. The other would be showing up some time before the bar opened, Barry had told him. 

When Klaus walked in behind Barry, the three rogues, as Leonard and Barry called them, stopped what the were doing. 

They were all looking at him, but thankfully not staring. And none of them seemed to hate him already, which was a pleasant surprise. 

The first one, who actually looked like she was working, was behind the bar. She had shoulder length, curly brown hair, and everything she was wearing was gold, or at the very least gold coloured. She looked wild, dangerous with her sharp smile, and Klaus was intrigued. 

Thee other two looked like they were in the middle of making out when Klaus and Barry had arrived. They were leaning against the wall next to the bar, pressed closely to each other. 

One of them was wearing a plain enough light green dress shirt and jeans. But his glasses were crooked, and his short brown hair was sticking up in all different directions. 

The second one was wearing black pants and a black and white checkered t shirt underneath a leather jacket. His jet black hair looked perfectly intact, but his neck was littered with hickeys that stood out against his pale skin. 

“Klaus, this is Lisa Snart, Len’s younger sister”Barry informed him as he pointed to the beautiful brunette. She flashed him a dazzling smile that did nothing to ease Klaus’ nerves. 

“The two idiots that were just making out, are Hartley and Axel. They kind of just told Len that they were dating, so they’ll be a bit all over each other for a while, since they can be.” Barry told him with a chuckle. 

He heard a protest from Axel, the one in the leather jacket, but Hartley just shrugged, as if admitting it was the truth. 

Detaching himself from the wall, Axel walked up to him and offered a hand. Klaus hesitantly took it, smiling when Axel didn’t so much as blink at his ‘Hello’ tattoo. 

“Always wanted to meet a Hargreeves” Axel mumbled as Klaus let go of his hand. “Dear old dad was always saying your family was what’s wrong with the world” 

“Axel!” Lisa scolded “you can’t say shit like that when he literally just got here!”

Klaus couldn’t help himself. He laughed. Laughed for what felt like hours. 

“Well, as much as I hate to agree with creepy old men, in this case I just might. Our family, if it could ever be called that, was a science experiment gone wrong. 

The names we were given, were only the numbers of the order in which our father purchased us, until our robot mother named us when we were seven or eight. 

The most stable of all my siblings was the one that was literally brainwashed into thinking she had no powers to begin with.” He told them between laughs. 

Lisa, Barry and Hartley stared at him, eyes almost comically wide. Axel, on the other hand, started to laugh right along side Klaus. 

The two of them continued to laugh, until the telltale sign of blue, space-time-whatever-the-fuck started to appear next to Axel. Shit. Klaus thought. If his brother Five was here-

But as the blue cloud of whatever-it-was disappeared, a woman was left in its place. 

She had dark curly hair, darker skin, and deep brown eyes that looked nothing like his brother. She also didn’t seem to be trapped in the body of an eight year old like Five was, which was a relief. Klaus didn’t know if he could take any more space-time-travel bullshit. 

“Hey Lisa, Mark and Roy are on their way and just wanted to know when the new guy- oh shit” she said as she finally saw him. She grimaced, turning her full attention to him. 

“Sorry, I- shit. I’m Shawna, it’s nice to meet you” she said, offering Klaus a warm smile. 

“Klaus” he answered, smiling back at her politely. 

As Shawna promised, two more men arrived only minutes later. 

One of them looked plain enough, with short brown hair and a jean jacket. The only remarkable thing about him was how dumb he looked for wearing sunglasses inside. 

He politely introduced himself as Roy, and even explained to Klaus that no, he wasn’t the type of asshole to wear sunglasses inside, he just didn’t have full control of his powers when he was drunk, and didn’t want to hurt anyone. 

The other man wore a leather jacket that matched his jet black hair. He had an air about him that seemed powerful, and it made Klaus a little uncomfortable. He would have to find out just what exactly the man’s powers were. He mumbled a quick hello, introduced himself as Mark, and moved to stand next to Shawna. 

Oh, Klaus thought. Mark was definitely the possessive type. He would have to steer clear of Shawna. She was pretty enough, but Klaus, despite some of his life choices, actually did have a sense of self preservation. 

Something buzzed beside him, making Klaus jump. Barry, who was apparently still standing next to Klaus, had his phone in hand before Klaus could blink. 

Klaus couldn’t hear whoever was on the line, but judging from the frown on Barry’s face, it couldn’t be good. The call lasted seconds and as soon as it ended, Barry left with a hardly heard apology. 

After that, the rogues began to set up the bar quietly, and Klaus could tell that they were tiptoeing around him. Walking on eggshells, so to say. 

The silence was awkward at first, but as it stretched on, it was almost stifling. Klaus wanted to say something, felt that he should, but for the first time in his life, he didn’t know what to say in a situation like this. 

That was why Klaus was beyond relieved when he saw Ben’s familiar form reaper in the bar. Even if it meant an eventual lecture he would get. 

“Klaus, I know you’ve only been gone a few days but Vanya and Diego-“ Ben started but was cut off. A bolt of lightning his the floor not a foot from where Ben was standing. 

“Who are you and how did you get in?” Mark asked. Seriously? Someone that angry had control of the freaking weather? Klaus thought. 

He watched, stunned, as Roy jumped in front of Ben. 

“Seriously Mark? Thought you were more ask questions first, shoot later?” Roy asked, and Klaus could tell there was double meaning there, even if he didn’t know what it was. 

Mark deflated immediately, and Klaus swore he could see tears in Mark’s eyes. 

“As cute as that knight in shining armour act was” Axel spoke from his place behind the bar counter “it was completely unnecessary” 

Roy turned to him, and even with his sunglasses, Klaus could tell he looked confused. It didn’t help when Axel laughed instead of answering. 

“Mark can’t hurt him, he’s already dead” Hartley clarified for everyone. 

Klaus sighed. Now that was an issue he wasn’t looking forward to having to explain. Especially when he wasn’t sure how he was making Ben visible to begin with. 

He watched Roy turn around to face Ben, and Klaus was prepared to defend Ben, whatever it was Roy was going to say. 

“Well damn do I ever feel lucky to be able to see you” Roy said, his eyes trailing up and down Ben’s, well, not body, Klaus thought. 

And Ben, bless him and his cold dead heart, Klaus thought. He was blushing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay Ben! I’m not really sorry that this is mostly Ben so far, but I promise there will eventually be some Klaus/Diego in this! Let me know what you think!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Klaus’ first shift at Saints, yay! Also, so happy that people seem to like Ben and Roy together?

Klaus had been living with the rogues for a few days now. Tonight was different though. Tonight was his first shift at Saints and Sinners. 

He was a little nervous, since he’d never actually had a job. But the rogues has all been nice to him so far, so he wasn’t too worried. 

As Klaus got ready, he thought about how quickly his life had turned around. 

Yes, he was still wearing skin tight leather pants, but he had actually bought them, instead of grabbing them from Allison’s closet. 

And now he was getting ready to go to work for his super villain boss. Dad would be so pissed, Klaus thought, the biggest smile on his face. 

The rogues had even taken a liking to Ben too, which Klaus was grateful for. He didn’t know what he would have done if they didn’t like Ben. Or if they hadn’t been able to see him. 

But being here, with Ben, with a group of weird, superpowered people that were thieves, and working at a bar on the side? It felt more like home than anything Klaus had ever know. 

God, Klaus thought. He hadn’t even gotten high since leaving the Academy. He’d been trying a few different pills from the science nerds, as Len liked to call Barry’s friends, but that was it. 

What a fucking turn of events, Klaus thought, as he finished his eyeliner. 

 

When Klaus got to the bar, half an hour before his shift started, a few of the rogues were already there setting up. 

Axel was behind the bar cleaning a few glasses. Shawna was testing her powers to see how far she could teleport with the kegs she was bringing in from storage. 

Roy was moving a few tables back to the center of the room. They’d apparently been knocked over when someone had started a fight last night, which, he’d been told, wasn’t a rare occurrence. 

Ben was there too, sitting at a bar stool, watching Roy work. Klaus couldn’t believe how close those two had gotten in just a short few days. 

Klaus walked over to the bar. He pulled out a stool and sat down next to Ben. 

“So Ben, what did you do today?” Klaus asked, unable to hide the predatory grin on his face. Ben turned his attention to Klaus. He looked almost sheepish. 

“Roy was on a job today” he mumbled. Oh, Klaus thought, waiting for him to continue. Ben hadn’t been with Klaus all day, and he apparently hadn’t been with Roy either. 

“I went back to check on the others” he admitted. And yeah, that made sense. Klaus may be the only one in their messed up family that could see Ben, but that didn’t mean Ben didn’t care about the others. 

“It was weird though, Diego and Vanya could see me, Five kind of could, and Luther and Allison couldn’t at all.” Ben continued. And wait what? 

“How is that possible?” Klaus asked. He’d never had that problem before. Ben shrugged. 

“It’s your powers, not mine” he reminded Klaus helpfully. Klaus sighed. He should probably start trying to figure out how his powers worked. 

“But you should know, Vanya hugged me” Ben told him. Klaus was shocked. Vanya had been able to hug him? Ben had physically manifested enough for that? 

“Aw that’s not fair Klaus! Why don’t I get to hug Ben?” Roy called from across the bar, breaking the awkward tension that had started to build. 

“Yeah, Well, Vanya deserves all the hugs” Klaus answered, only half jokingly. Really though, Klaus thought, if anyone deserved to be able to hug Ben, it was their sister Vanya. 

He would figure it out later, Klaus thought. But in the mean time, he got up and helped Roy move a few more tables back to their usual spot. 

Not long after that, patrons started to trickle in. It was slow at first, but started to pick up as it got dark out. He would be surprised at how busy it was for Tuesday night, if Lisa hadn’t warned him that it would be. 

“Tuesdays were always the slowest day of the week, so the rogues started messing around with their powers here, since not many people were looking. 

Started off mostly by accident, but now it’s a bit of a tradition to put on a bit of a show on Tuesdays. Brings in more tips.” She’d told him yesterday. 

Klaus, who was serving tables for now, and backup on the bar if needed, was glad he’d gotten the warning. 

He knew the rogues had powers, but to see Shawna moving people’s drinks along the bar with nothing but a stare? It would have freaked him out at least a bit. 

Klaus grabbed a tray of food from the bar, brining it over to a booth in the back corner. 

He put the two burgers down in front of the men, not speaking, and definitely not bothering to pay attention to them. He could tell they were drunk, and from his experience, drunk men in a dive bar, even one that he was working in, were never a good thing. 

“Where are you going hun? Not gonna give us a show of your powers?” He heard one of the men ask as he started to leave. 

“C’mon Matt, you know not all the rogues have powers” he heard the other man say. 

The first guy, Matt, laughed. 

“What, the rogues haven’t taken in anyone in years, you honestly think Snart would take on an average, non powered junky? Out of the kindness of his heart?”He asked. 

They had no idea who Klaus was, he realized. Thank god. He turned around, summoning the slightest bit of his power. 

“You don’t want to find out what I can do” he told them. Klaus knew his eyes were glowing white, and had purposely made his voice stretch and echo across both planes of existing. 

It was a small display, but the two men looked absolutely awe struck. Klaus was smiling the entire walk back to the bar. 

As the night progressed, Klaus could hear whispers about the new meta the rogues had taken in. No one knew who he was, and there was already lots of speculation around his recent appearance. 

Some speculated that he’d been in prison until now. Others thought he had just been sick. Some had gone so far as to say that he’d been a rogue from the start, that Snart, Len, had kept him hidden until now. 

Klaus was behind the bar, pouring a beer for one of his tables when he heard someone sit down behind him. 

“You’ve made quite a name for yourself already, I see” He heard Len say. 

Klaus turned around, setting the beer down for Axel to bring to the table. Len looked relaxed, dressed in a long sleeve shirt and jeans. Not something you’d expect from a master thief after a successful heist. 

“I didn’t really mean for it to happen. I just-“ he started, but Len interrupted. 

“I don’t care about the rumours. Let people talk. I wanted to talk to you about your powers. About what Ben told me today.” He said. Damnit Ben, he thought. Let him talk to someone other than Klaus, and the little shit goes behind his back to his boss? Rude. 

“What about my powers? Yeah they’re getting stronger, but they were always stronger when I’m sober.” Klaus said. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was scared of what all of this meant. That Vanya had been able to hug Ben. That only Diego, Vanya, and sort of Five had been able to see Ben to begin with. 

“You don’t like Luther and Allison,do you?” Len asked. Klaus nodded because yeah, he didn’t. He hated Luther with a burning passion, hated that Allison took his side in everything. 

“You don’t hate Five, you just don’t really like him that much either though” Len asked and again Klaus nodded. Five was a bit annoying, and he made Klaus feel dumb for not understanding the literal equation of space-time-whatever in the universe, but he was okay. 

“I think your powers are tied to your emotions. Allison and Luther can’t see Ben because you don’t want them to. You don’t think they deserve to. And like you said, Vanya deserves all the hugs, so why not make her able hug Ben?” Len told him. And wow, that made sense. In a totally fucked up way, but it did. 

“I think I need to talk to Barry” Klaus mumbled, as he poured himself a drink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still no Diego, sorry! Would you guys want a chapter from his POV for the next one? Let me know!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s some Diego’s POV for y’all! Let me know what you think!

Diego was not crying, ok? He wasn’t. His eyes were just watering from the sunlight. Or something. It had nothing to do with the fact that Ben had just been here. That Vanya had hugged Ben. And it definitely didn’t have anything to do with the fact that Klaus had been gone for almost a week now. 

It’s not the first time he’d been gone for this long, Diego knew. But this time felt different somehow, and Diego was worried that he would never get to see Klaus again, worried he would never get to tell him- 

A knock on his bedroom door interrupted his train of thought. 

“Diego?” Vanya called from just outside the door. Her voice was shaky, as if she’d been not-crying too. 

“ ‘s open” he told her, not moving from his spot on his bed. He heard the door creak as Vanya pushed it open. When he looked up at her, her eyes were red and puffy, just as Diego imagined his own were. 

“How are you holding up?” She asked, as she sat down next to him on the bed. Diego shrugged because, honestly, he didn’t know how he felt about all of this. 

He was glad he’d been able to see Ben after so long. Confused that Luther and Allison hadn’t been able to. Slightly jealous that Vanya had been able to hug him. 

But more than anything, he missed Klaus. 

“I just wish Ben had told us something. Anything” Diego mumbled, looking back down at his feet. 

Diego tensed when he felt a hand on his shoulder, but willed himself not to react to Vanya’s comforting gesture. 

“We know that he’s safe. Ben said that Klaus is getting help. That’s good, isn’t it’s?” She asked, and Diego nodded. 

He had be relieved beyond words when Ben had told them that Klaus was not only safe, but also getting help for his addiction. That there was someone, or many someones looking out for him. 

But god it hurt to know that Klaus had gone to someone else for help. 

“I j-just. I-I miss him” Diego managed to stutter out eventually. He let himself be pulled into a hug by Vanya, taking small comfort in the warmth of her embrace. 

Neither of them spoke after that, and Diego was grateful that at least one of his siblings seemed to have a grasp on normal emotional responses. God knows it wasn’t one of his strong suits. 

For the rest of the day, Diego found himself struggling to think of where Klaus could be. He checked all of the usual places round town, but of Klaus was getting clean, Diego knew that he wouldn’t find him there. 

But Diego didn’t know where else to look. Didn’t know of any friends Klaus had, of anywhere else he could stay. 

So Diego, despite promising himself he wouldn’t, called the one person that he knew could help. 

“I’m still on medical leave right now, so whatever it is-“ Eudora stopped when Diego sobbed. 

He heard he sigh before she continued, much softer now. 

“What’s wrong?” She asked. “I’ve been out of the office for a while so you’re going to catch me up on whatever’s going on” she added. 

It took a few tries and a lot of stuttering on Diego’s part, but eventually he managed a broken ‘Klaus is gone’. 

“Why don’t you meet me at that donut shop you like? We can talk more there.” She offered. God Diego felt bad for asking this of her, asking anything of her after she’d almost gotten killed last time she tried to help him. 

But there was a difference between finding out which rehab center Klaus was in, and going after time traveling assassins to rescue someone. 

“T-that would be g-good” he told her before hanging up. 

It was only a few minutes walk there, so when Diego got to Gritty’s, he ordered a coffee while he waited for Eudora. 

As the minutes ticked by, Diego started to wonder if he’d made a mistake. Eudora didn’t need to get involved in his family drama. Not after she had almost died-

His thoughts were just interrupted by the high pitched ring of a bell announcing someone’s arrival. Diego looked up, and was relieved to see Eudora. 

She wasn’t wearing her usual work uniform, but still managed to look professional, even with one arm in a sling, and the other still bandaged. Her short dark hair perfectly done and her head held high. 

Eudora sat down next to him at the counter and ordered herself a coffee. She set her coffee down, not even bothering with a sip before turning her attention to Diego. 

“Why don’t you tell me what happened? Try to start from the beginning.” She asked, her voice still so soft and kind. He’d only ever heard her use this tone of voice with kids, or when she was interviewing a particularly distraught witness. 

“When my dad died, we all came back home for the funeral. Everything was a mess for the first week or so, and then it was fine. Everything was going, well, not good, but not bad either

Then Luther made a stupid comment about Klaus’ addiction problems, and Klaus just left. No one has seen him since” Diego explained, honestly surprised et hadn’t stuttered once. 

He still didn’t know how much Eudora knew about his family, so he didn’t mention Ben, didn’t mention that he knew that Klaus was, at the very least, okay. 

“I checked all the rehab centres in town and all the hospitals. He wasn’t arrested either. I don’t know him like you do, but is it possible that he left town?” She asked and Diego was shocked. It must have shown on his face because Eudora rolled her eyes. 

“We might not be dating anymore, but I still care about you. I still keep tabs on you and your weird family” she told him with a smile. 

It was times like this where Diego wished he could love her. Someone kind, caring, and accepting of the general weirdness that came with being a Hargreeves. It would make everything so much easier. 

But nothing in Diego’s life had ever been easy, so why would his love life be any different? He thought with a sigh. 

“I guess it’s possible, that Klaus left town” he finally answered. 

He had considered the possibility, but never thought Klaus would spend his drug money on transportation. But if he was getting clean, then it was starting to look like a much more viable option. 

“Now, I’ll start looking into where he could be, and how far he could have gotten. 

I don’t mean to be rude but I know Klaus pretty well from the twenty something times he’s been arrested. He’s not one to carry too much cash with him, so he couldn’t have gotten too far if he did leave town.” She told him. 

He thanked her again, and their conversation turned towards more pleasant things. Well, as pleasant as he could manage. 

By the time they left, it was dark out, but Diego didn’t mind. He already felt much better than he had, just knowing that someone was helping him look for Klaus. 

“When we find Klaus” Eudora said, and Diego noticed that she had said when, not if “are you going to tell him that you’re in love with him?” She asked, when they were just outside of Gritty’s. 

Diego was too shocked to answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, yes I know that Eudora dies, but this isn’t just a better ending for Klaus, okay?


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I lied. This isn’t a Klaus chapter, it’s Ben. I’d be more sorry if I didn’t love Ben so much, and the chapter wasn’t extra long :)

Ben had never been happier in his life. Or after-life. Klaus was safe, happy, and for once in his life, not using. He was hardly even drinking anymore. 

Thanks to the rogues, Klaus was finally, finally getting the help he desperately needed. 

Because of that, the rogues could see Ben. Roy could see Ben. God, it was embarrassing for Ben to even think about, his feelings for Roy. 

He was literally dead. What chance did he have compared to any living person on the planet?

Sure, Roy seemed equally as interested in him, but Ben knew it would eventually fade. 

Even with Klaus’ powers getting stronger, Ben would never be able to hold a solid form for long, and nothing could replace the basic human need for physical contact. 

So, while Roy might be willing to entertain the idea of being with him, with an honest to god ghost, it would never last. 

That didn’t make Ben want it any less though. 

Ben sighed at the thought as he followed Klaus into STAR labs, where Barry and his friends were waiting for them. 

Klaus had finally gotten around to asking Barry for help controlling his powers, and today was their first day of trying. Ben honestly wasn’t sure what to expect, and that worried him. 

They walked down a long hallway that reminded Ben far too much of the Academy for his liking. The walls were all a dull metallic colour, some with futuristic looking tech on them. Everywhere he looked, it was obvious that this was a lab. 

At the end of the hallway, Barry was standing next to what Ben assumed were elevator doors. Ben followed Klaus, as he continued his slow walk towards Barry.

And damn did Ben ever wish he knew how visible he was right now. It was always so awkward to see people, to be able to talk to them, but never knowing if they could see him. 

“Hi Klaus. Hi Ben” Barry greeted, as the got closer. Ben let out a sigh of relief. 

He was glad Barry could see him, but mostly glad that Barry had acknowledged that he could. It had been an awkward first few times when Ben had started to talk about someone, only to realize they could hear him. 

The three of them took the elevator down for what felt like hours. It had probably only been a few minutes, but eventually the doors opened to another identical looking hallway. 

Klaus was going to get lost here at least twice, Ben thought as they continued to follow Barry. 

Finally, they took a right turn into a large open room. In the center, was an all white desk in the shape of a semi circle, computer monitors crowded all along the top. On the wall opposite was a screen? Monitor? Taller than Ben was, and doubly wide. 

Off to the left was a sectioned off area that looked like a hospital room, where Barry’s two friends were. 

When they saw the three of them, maybe two of them? Cisco and Caitlin came to join them. They were, thankfully, staring at Ben. 

“So wait, why does Klaus need help if we can see Ben? Are you seeing other ghosts? Do we need to try making a new medication for you?” Cisco asked. His gaze flickered back and forth between Ben and Klaus, but it was Barry that answered. 

“It’s more about learning to control Klaus’ powers than anything. Ben isn’t visible to everyone, and we think that it might be tied to Klaus’ emotions” he explained for them. 

It was still a touchy subject for Ben, who had been devastated that not all of his family could see him, and Klaus, who still hated the idea of admitting he needed help. 

When he saw that Cisco had this look his eyes of pure excitement, Ben knew it was going to be a long day. 

 

After hours of losing and regaining visibility for Ben, Klaus had finally started to understand his powers. His control was absolutely terrible, but at least they knew how his powers worked now. 

After promises of more training sessions, Klaus and Barry were on their way to Saints and Sinners, even if Klaus wasn’t working tonight. 

Ben was tempted to join them, if only for a second. But Roy wasn’t working, and after a day full of Barry and friends not being able to see him on and off, Ben wanted to know if Roy could still see him. 

It took Ben seconds to get to Roy’s apartment, a few doors down from Klaus’. Since being dead, all Ben had to do was think about a place, and he would end up there. It had helped him find Klaus on my any occasions. 

But right now, Klaus was the furthest thing from his mind, as he opened his eyes. He was in Roy’s living room, which was the same layout as Klaus’, down to the placement and size of all their furniture. 

There, sitting on the couch, was Roy. And he was staring right at Ben. 

Oh thank god, Ben thought, as he smiled. After that, Ben hesitated. He’d wanted to make sure Roy could still see him, had needed to. But he hadn’t exactly planned much further ahead than this. 

Ben was getting ready to leave, when Roy motioned for him to sit. 

“How was the training?” Roy asked as Ben sat down, purposefully leaving a bit of room between the two of them. 

“It was good. Klaus is really starting to understand how his powers work, and Cisco thinks-“ Ben started to explain, but Roy interrupted him. 

“I meant, how was it for you?” Roy clarified, but Ben was more confused now that he had been before. 

“I didn’t do any training?” He asked, sounding as if he truly wasn’t sure. As if it were possible that he had somehow missed it, or forgotten about it. But Roy only smiled sadly at him, before continuing. 

“You were there for Klaus’ training. I’m sure it wasn’t easy for you to be their lab rat for it. 

After being raised as part of some mad man’s science experiment, I’m sure that it wasn’t your idea of a pleasant experience. 

Especially when they couldn’t see you. I know how much that bothers you, not being seen” Roy told him. God, if Ben was alive right now, he would probably be crying. 

No one had ever noticed that much about him. Had never cared that much about him. 

“I’m sorry” Roy started, his gaze falling to his own hands folded in his lap. “I shouldn’t have brought that up, I knew it was a sensitive topic and I should have let you-“

“Thank you” Ben blurted out, interrupting him. 

“I don’t think anyone has ever noticed that much about me” he mumbled, slightly embarrassed that he could still blush as a ghost. 

Roy smiled softly at him, and went to pat him reassuringly on the leg. It was something he had seen Roy do to the other rogues as a gesture of comfort, and had wanted to feel It himself. But where Ben, had expected Roy’s hand to go straight through like it should have, like it normally would have, Roy’s hand made contact with his leg. 

The two of them didn’t move, too shocked to do anything but stare at Roy’s hand touching Ben’s leg. 

Ben looked up, meeting Roy’s wondrous stare. Ben was sure that his expression would look the same. 

As the two looked at each other, Ben noticed that they had started to lean in closer and closer. 

So Ben, in a moment of bravery, closed the gap and kissed Roy. It was a chaste kiss, just pressing their lips together briefly, but it was more than Ben had ever hoped for. Had ever allowed himself to hope for. 

When he pulled away, Roy had the biggest smile on his face. But his smile vanished as the hand on Ben’s thigh passed right through onto the couch beneath him. 

“Roy?” Ben asked, unsure just how much Klaus’ powers had started to fade. 

“Don’t worry, I can still see you and hear you” Roy told him, calming Ben at least a little bit. 

Roy could still see and hear him, for which Ben was grateful. But he would probably want an explanation for Ben kissing him. 

To Ben’s surprise, Roy told him that he wanted to be with Ben, whatever that meant with his ghostly state. 

Ben only blushed and nodded, not trusting himself to not say something stupid and ruin the moment. He’d been spending most of the past decade with Klaus, and the general weirdness that was Klaus’ sense of humour had definitely rubbed off on Ben. 

They spent the rest of the night talking about everything and nothing at the same time. For once, Ben felt truly happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was supposed to just be insecure!Ben but honestly I couldn’t just end with him being sad. Yay Ben? Let me know what you think!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the nice comments!
> 
> Sorry for the wait, I had such a hard time trying to figure out how I wanted this chapter to go and how to write it once I finally picked a direction. Thanks for you patience and support!

Klaus was standing outside a police station, and for the first time in, well, ever, it wasn’t because he was getting arrested. 

He was standing awkwardly, a tray of coffee in hand, unsure how to proceed. He may be an extremely awkward person with almost no sense for social norms, but that didn’t make make him a bad person. So the coffees he was holding hardly seemed like payment enough for Barry for helping him in a time of need. And after it. 

Barry, who was not just a CSI, but a god damn superhero. Who had seen a drunken, exhausted Klaus, and rather than leave him in a cell to cool off, or the streets like most would, had given him a home. Was helping Klaus with his powers. 

With that final thought as motivation, Klaus took a deep breath and pushed the station door open. When he walked in, every officer turned towards him. He saw a few even reaching for weapons. 

They seemed to relax when they took in his appearance, and Klaus was glad, for once, to have dressed down a little bit. 

Klaus was wearing jeans and a tight, pink crop top, but had thrown a cream coloured cardigan over it. He had put on a minimal amount of eyeliner and hadn’t even smudged it. 

After a few moments of awkward silence, one of the officers sitting closest to the door stood up and approached him. 

“Can I help you find someone?” He offered, and Klaus could tell he was hesitant about it. The officer was an older man with dark skin and slightly gray, almost balding hair. His name tag read ‘Detective West’. 

“I, um, brought coffee for my friend Barry?” He said, holding the coffee out for Detective West to see. 

Detective West didn’t seem to like his answer. His eyes narrowed, and Klaus could see the hints of a frown starting to show on his face. If Klaus hadn’t been trained to look for it he would have missed the detective’s displeasure. 

“Barry is busy right now, but if you want to wait, he should be back any minute” the detective answered through a fake smile. Klaus plastered on an equally fake smile and nodded politely. 

“That would be great” he told the detective, who only sighed before leading him upstairs. 

Klaus was both surprised and not, at the sight of Barry’s lab. It was, at first glance, an absolute mess. There were papers everywhere, and the equipment seemed to be shoved wherever it could fit. But as someone who knew Barry, he could almost see the method to the madness. 

Klaus set the coffee down on a table, about to take a seat, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. 

“I know you don’t actually know Barry, so why don’t you tell me who you really are?” The detective asked. His grip on Klaus’ shoulder tightened almost painfully, and this was not something Klaus had expected at all. 

Klaus turned towards the detective, answering with his own questions. 

“Who are you? And why do you think I don’t know Barry?” He countered staring the detective down. The detective didn’t flinch. 

“I’m Barry’s adoptive father, now I’ll only ask one more time, who are you?” The detective, Barry adoptive father, asked, sounding angry. 

Klaus wasn’t sure what to do. On one hand, he could take out the detective easily. But if this man was Barry’s adoptive father, that wasn’t a good option. 

Even if he wasn’t, Klaus didn’t think Barry would appreciate finding an unconscious cop in his lab. Especially if it meant Klaus giving away his identity.

So Klaus started to back up instead, raising his hands in gesture of surrender. 

The detective continued to advance, making Klaus back up until he ran into a wall. 

“I’ll just be leaving then” he said, waving at the detective with his hand that said goodbye. 

“Remind me never to try to do something nice again” he mumbled, as he tried to move towards the door. 

“Not so fast” the detective said, cutting off Klaus’ exit. 

“You look just like that kid a detective from out of town was asking about” he said. 

God Damnit, Klaus thought. Was Diego pretending to be a cop to get information again? He wondered, as he tried to think of a way to get himself out of his current predicament. 

“She said you were a recovering addict, but that you might be dangerous to anyone who tried to hurt you” he continued. And now Klaus didn’t have a clue who- 

Oh. Oh this was much worse than Klaus had originally thought. 

If Diego had gone to detective Patch for help, he must truly be desperate. Or stupid. 

She had almost gotten herself killed looking for Klaus last time, when he’d been kidnaped by time traveling assassins, and Klaus knew Diego blamed no one but himself for it. 

For Patch getting hurt, for Klaus getting kidnaped to begin with, even though it had all been out of his control. Out of everyone’s control. 

If she was here though, looking for him at Diego’s request, something must have gone terribly wrong back home. Nothing else could explain Diego’s sudden interest in Klaus’ wellbeing. 

“Look, I don’t know what to tell you man, so why don’t you just let me leave-“ he was interrupted by a feeling of air rushing by in front of him, and in a split second, the detective was no longer standing in front of him. 

Detective West was now on the opposite side of the room, Barry standing between them. 

“What the hell Joe?” He asked Detective West angrily. Detective West seemed unfazed by his powers, before he seemed to realize that Klaus had seen them too. 

“Barry!” He yelled “how many times have I warned you not to use your powers in front of others?” He asked much more quietly, sounding all too much like the father figure he had claimed to be. 

Barry’s back may have been to Klaus, but he could still tell that Barry had rolled his eyes at his adoptive father. 

“Klaus already knows, and yeah, he can keep a secret. But why are you questioning him in my lab? Especially when he was nice enough to bring me coffee” Barry asked. 

Klaus had known Barry for a few weeks, but had never seen him this angry. Not even when facing down the villains of the week. This anger seemed to be one built on years worth of emotions. 

“He’s the addict that cop was looking for, and you just knew the entire time?” Detective West asked in place of an answer, and yeah, Klaus could see where he was coming from, but, 

“Yeah, Barry has known me this entire time. And yes, he may have lied to Detective Patch about me, I don’t even know. 

But are you seriously going to get mad at him, adoptive son or not, for trying his best to help a recovering addict get off the streets and get a job?” He asked, drawing their attention back to himself. 

Detective West seemed to deflate at that, and Klaus tried not to look too happy about it. 

“And like Barry said, I won’t tell anyone his secret” Klaus reassured the detective. He made a show of making his eyes glow white, a trick he had mastered long before Barry had started helping him with his powers. 

After that Detective West left, grumbling something about a case he had to get back to. 

Klaus stayed a little while longer, exchanging small talk with Barry before heading out himself. If Patch had been sniffing around at the police station, he did not want to be found hanging around there. 

He needed to come up with a way to get her off his trail, or find out what had gotten Diego so upset that he had sent his sort of girlfriend to look for Klaus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I had so many ideas for where this chapter could go.... sorry for picking one that was probably not the most interesting! It was just the best plot wise :) 
> 
> Let me know what you think! 
> 
> Also, would anyone like a chapter from Barry’s POV? He is honestly so much fun to write


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads up but this switches from Klaus’ POV to Len’s about half way through :)

Despite his reputation, Klaus was a fairly smart person. And he had decades of experience running from cops. 

So he knew his best option, for now at least, was to leave town. And that was how he found himself outside of Leonard Snart’s apartment, a few doors down from his own, duffle bag in hand. 

Klaus wasn’t sure if he should knock, given how late it was, but if he knew one thing about Leonard Snart, it was the weird hours he kept. So, as politely as he could, Klaus knocked. 

He could hear shuffling coming from inside, accompanied by a few muttered curses. A few minutes longer than Klaus expected, an only partially clothed Leonard Snart opened the door. 

Klaus didn’t mean to stare at him, but it was hard not to. The boxers Len had on hardly did anything to cover the scars that littered his body, mixed in with a few fading tattoos. 

Klaus stayed silent as Len crossed his arms, leaning against the doorframe. 

“That’s doesn’t have anything to do with the cop that was looking for you, does it?” Len asked, pointing to the bag Klaus was still clutching. 

Klaus blinked, staring at Len as if to ask how the hell he knew about that. Seconds later he got his answer, as Barry stumbled into his view, equally as dressed as Len. 

“Klaus?” Barry asked. Klaus tried not to think about the fact that they didn’t seem to have been sleeping. 

“Why don’t you come in? I know you probably want to talk about that cop that I talked to” Barry offered from behind Len. 

Klaus sighed. He absolutely did not want to talk about Diego’s cop, sort of girlfriend, who was looking for him for some reason. But Barry looked like he expected at least part of an explanation. Damnit, he thought, as he followed Barry and Len into the apartment. 

Once he was settled on a chair, facing the couch that Len and Barry were sitting on, Klaus was feeling even less like sharing. 

He was fidgeting with the strap of the duffle bag at his feet, refusing to look at either Barry or Len. 

“Do we have to do this? I can just leave until detective Patch starts to look somewhere else. I hear Star City is nice this time of year, and I-“ he stopped, not really sure what else to say. 

“Well, how about I tell you what we know so far, and you can fill in the rest?” Barry offered. He didn’t sound mad at Klaus, for not wanting to talk, or for wanting to run. 

And that was the most frustrating part. No one seemed mad at him for anything around here. Especially for things that would have gotten him in so much trouble back at the Academy. 

So Klaus nodded, and waited for Barry to continue. 

“You were at the Academy for your father’s funeral, and stayed after that, probably to have a place to stay” Barry started, and Klaus finally looked up at him. 

Barry looked almost as uncomfortable as Klaus felt. So Klaus, being the caring person that he was, put on a smile, and encouraged Barry to continue. 

“Something happened, and you, well, ran and ended up here. But your brother Diego is worried about you, so he got his friend to look for you.” He concluded. And didn’t that sound like the most simplified version of what had happened. 

There was no mention of the apocalypse they had stopped, no mention of Klaus being kidnapped by time traveling assassins, who would have killed him if detective Patch hadn’t shown up. No mention of traveling back in time, no mentions of Dave- 

“I- I stayed there because it was a mansion, full of stuff that I could sell for drug money” he admitted. It was not something he was proud of, but it was the truth. 

“Then my brother Five, who’s been missing for sixteen years, shows up and tell us we have a week to stop the apocalypse, which we did.

I was ready to get clean after that. The end of the world gives you a bit of perspective, you know? 

But then Luther starts going on about starting the Academy back up, and said something about how I did nothing to stop the apocalypse, that I could just go back to whatever bar they dragged me out of. 

As if he wasn’t the one to cause the apocalypse. As if him locking Vanya up isn’t what set her off. But I know what that’s like and i just- well. That’s when I ran. 

And now something terrible must have happened for Diego to send his girlfriend after me. Especially after she almost died trying to save me last time”. He explained, his eyes almost teary. 

Barry was staring at him with an expression that was half pity, half awe. Len’s expression was more controlled, but Klaus could see that he felt at least a little bad for him. 

“I’m so sorry you had to go through that” Barry said. He sounded as close to tears as Klaus, but there was something there, that sounded like he wanted to add something else. 

“What is it?” Klaus asked. He hated when people acted as if he was made of glass. 

“It’s nothing, just that I don’t think anything serious has happened for your brother to be looking for you.” Barry mumbled. Klaus would have laughed at him if he didn’t sound so serious. 

“Sure, sure. Diego could just be worried about me.” He said dismissively. Diego hadn’t been worried about Klaus since they were kids, and Klaus was still getting locked up in a crypt to ‘help him control his powers’. 

 

Len made sure his expression was a neutral one, as he listened to Klaus’ story of what had happened. 

He’d always know who Klaus was. Had always known what the Umbrella Academy was. But hearing it first hand was always different, as he knew from his own experiences. 

It had been fine when Hartley had shown him an article about Klaus after the two Santini murders. But hearing about Klaus, who could talk to ghosts, being locked in a cemetery for days as a child? 

That even after all this, his sad excuse of a brother had tried to lock up one of their other siblings? That the same idiot of a brother, after almost causing the literal apocalypse, had some how managed to make Klaus think it was his fault, even if he had been the one to stop it?

Len wasn’t angry. He was fucking furious. It seemed like before Klaus had stumbled his way into their lives, his brother Diego was the only one looking out for him other than Ben. 

He was grateful that Klaus had had someone, he was. But Len hadn’t been this angry at someone since he’d killed his father for putting a bomb in Lisa’s head. 

Reginald Hargreeves was lucky, he wouldn’t be meeting the same chilly end as Len’s father. But Len, or one of the rogues at least, would have to pay a visit to Luther. 

By the time Barry had convinced Klaus to at least stay in Central city and walked Klaus back to his own apartment, Len had decided that he would have to get in contact with Mick in the morning. Mick had left on what was supposed to be a short mission with the Legends, but he’d been gone since before Klaus had gotten here. 

The second the door to their apartment was closed, Len felt a rush of air around him. Before he could blink, Len found himself on his bed. Their bed. 

“I guess Klaus sufficiently killed the mood?” Barry asked as he got underneath the sheets. Len hummed in agreement, getting into the bed next to him. Neither of them bothered to take off the remainder of their clothes. Len was the first to speak. 

“Can you blame him for wanting to run? He spent his entire life being experimented on, and the only person he ever cared about, other than Ben, sent his girlfriend to look for him. 

If you sent Iris to look for me while I waited it out after a heists-“ Barry leaned over and pressed a kiss to his lips to interrupt him. 

“I would never send Iris to look for you. I know that underneath that cold exterior, you’re still insecure about us” Barry answered with utmost certainty, and something in Len’s mind clicked. 

“Oh my god. Klaus is in love with Diego” he realized out loud.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for how dialogue heavy this is, let me know what you think!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I.... don’t even know how this chapter was supposed to end, or start, or, well, whatever, but this is definitely better :) 
> 
> On another note, I totally did not give Klaus a small POV at the beginning of this just so Leonard Snart could make a pun....
> 
> Let me know what you think!

It was another regular Tuesday night at Saints and Sinners. Mark was mixing drinks with miniature tornadoes in glasses, and Axel had had just won his tenth straight game of darts. Not that anyone but him was counting. Roy was off tonight, so of course he and Ben weren’t here, Klaus thought, smiling to himself. 

Klaus was happy that things had gone back to normal after Barry had convinced him to stay in Central. 

It was funny though. Detective Patch had left a day after her arrival. Apparently Diego had gotten himself arrested again, so she’d had to go deal with that. Something about him harassing the Mayor of Star City’s girlfriend. 

Klaus hardly thought Diego was the type to do that. She probably had information Diego needed for whatever problem was going on at the Academy. 

Or Diego had tracked down the girl Klaus had sat next to on the bus to question her about him, a voice whispered in the back of his mind. It sounded all too much like Ben for Klaus’s liking. 

Klaus was saved from having to distract himself from those thoughts when the door to the bar burst open. It was Len. 

“Shawna, get Axel and Mark out of here. Anyone else with outstanding warrants needs to make themselves scarce for the rest of the night. The cops will be here in less than five minutes” he ordered. 

It was almost scary, how different Len was. He was in full Captain Cold mode, and it wasn’t just because he was in costume. His entire personality had completely changed. 

Klaus watched, mesmerized, as everyone reacted. Shawna quickly got the two rogues out, and about half the patrons got up and left in a hurry. 

Klaus was so distracted that he missed Len move from the front door. He was now standing next to Klaus, and Klaus realized, had asked him a question. 

“What?” Klaus asked, focusing back on him. 

“Do you need to leave?” Len asked, sounding much more like himself. Why was everyone so god damn nice to him? 

“The cops can’t arrest me for anything from before, if that’s what you’re asking” Klaus answered. 

Len nodded, and Klaus could see the moment he became Captain Cold again. The caring expression slipped from his face, and when he spoke, his tone was much harsher. 

“Everyone else, go back to what you were doing, and try not to lose your cool” he called out to the remaining patrons. Klaus had cover his mouth to stop himself from laughing at the pun. 

 

Barry was trying his best not to look freaked out. Joe had told him, only seconds ago, that he and a few of the other officers, were going to Saints and Sinners for their semi regular search for any of the rogues with outstanding warrants. 

Barry had texted Len as soon as he’d know, but he also knew it was only, at most, a ten minute drive from the police station to the bar. And the worst part? Barry was supposed to go, with Joe, in case there was a crime scene to process. 

Barry just hoped to god that Klaus wasn’t working tonight. That would be one hell of a mess to explain to Joe, he thought, as he got into the cop car with him. 

Barry did not say a word the entire ride over. If he did, he probably would have yelled at Joe for his comments on some of Axel’s life choices. And especially for the comments about Mark’s emotional instability after his brother’s death. He did not bring up the fact that Joe had been the one that had shot Mark’s brother. 

When they arrived, Joe got out of the car immediately. He went over to join the other officers, and started giving them orders. Barry followed moments later, still praying that Len had gotten his message, and, at the very least, gotten Axel and Mark out. 

Barry stood next to one of the other cop cars that was parked in front of the bar. It had just started to get dark out, for which he was grateful. It was Tuesday, so the bar would have been packed, but some of the more, unsavoury patrons wouldn’t be there until well after dark. 

Barry listened intently to Joe’s plan, which consisted of Joe going in through the front door, with two more officers, while the others waited at the two exits at the back. Thank god they hadn’t found the secret tunnels in the basement storage, he thought, as Joe signalled for the officers to get in place. The officers hastily did, leaving Barry alone with Joe at the cars. 

He saw Joe pull on a bulletproof vest, and had to stop himself from saying something stupid. Yes, Barry knew there was a no weapons policy at Saints, but even if Joe believed him, he would want to know how Barry came across the information. 

But when Joe reached for the gun at his side, Barry spoke up.

“Is that really necessary?” He asked, motioning to Joe’s gun. 

Joe’s gaze shifted from the gun he’d been loading, to Barry, and he’s expression was one of sympathy. 

“Barry, I know that Snart is still holding your, secret, against you, but that’s not going to stop me from doing my job” Joe told him. 

Barry sighed in frustration. Joe had completely failed to see the point he’d been trying to make. Again.

Barry followed Joe, a few steps behind, as he pushed the main doors of Saints and Sinners open with his free hand. 

There were a few busy tables here and there, but for a Tuesday night, it looked deserted. Barry had to stop himself from letting out a sigh of relief. Len had gotten his message in time. 

To their right was the section with booths, on their left, an open area with pool tables and a few seats. Right across from the door was the bar. 

Shawna was behind the counter, pouring drinks normally, no sign of her powers at all. Barry could see Lisa in the kitchen moving around frantically. She was probably slammed with orders since she was on her own. Hartley would normally help her out, but he was busy helping Klaus wait tables. Shit. Klaus. 

“Everyone freeze!” Joe yelled. He and the other two officers behind him raised their guns at the crowd of diners. The diners raised theirs hands halfway, just enough to show that they were unarmed.

Joe began to walk around, gun still raised, when the door from the kitchen opened, and Barry’s heart stopped. It was Len. 

He was wearing jeans and a light blue dress shirt that made his eyes stand out even more than normal. God he looked beautiful, Barry thought. Len must have caught him looking, because he shot Barry a quick smirk before turning back to Joe. 

Barry had to stop himself from blushing as Len addressed the officers. 

“ ‘Evening officers. What can I do for Central City’s finest?” Len asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Was he trying to start a fight? Barry wondered as he shot Len an incredulous look.

Beside him, Barry heard Joe scoff, probably equally as thrown off by Len’s answer. 

“You can stand back and let us search the bar” Joe answered. Barry rolled his eyes. Did Joe seriously expect Len to sit back and let that happen? 

“Unless you’ve got a warrant detective, you’ll just have to try again another time” Len predictably answered. He was starting to sound defensive though, which was not a good sign. 

Joe, instead of turning around and leaving like he should have, like the other officers did, turned his gun to Len. 

Barry’s heart stopped as time slowed down around him. The second the other officers were out of the building, Barry stepped between Joe and Len. 

Joe’s gun lowered slowly, hesitantly, and it killed Barry that his own adoptive father hated Len, the man he was in love with that much. 

“Barry get out of the way” Joe ordered, glaring at him, but Barry shook his head. 

“You need to leave Joe” he answered, more authority in his voice than he ever remembered using. 

“Barry” Joe warned, raising the gun again. Barry was fucking shocked. He never thought Joe, the man that had taken him in as a kid, would threaten to shoot him. Joe probably wasn’t serious and fully expecting Barry to get out of the way and let him shoot Len. But still. 

“What are you going to do Joe? Shoot a CSI and then shoot a man with no criminal record in a bar full of witnesses?” He asked incredulously. It did nothing to calm Joe. 

“I’m well aware that he had his criminal records destroyed” Joe pointed out. And yeah, Joe was well aware that Barry had been the one to do it. But he probably didn’t know that Barry had gone and erased all of the rogues’ records too. Barry didn’t even think Len knew about that. Yet. 

“Who was it you came in here looking for again?” He asked, already knowing the answer. 

“Because I’m sure that if you checked, you don’t have anything to arrest them for either” he informed Joe. 

“Barry, you can’t just-“ Whatever Joe was about to say was cut off by a manic laugh. Klaus’ to be specific. 

“He can’t what, detective West? Take the law into his own hands like you were doing when you tried to shoot Len?” Klaus asked. Barry was impressed by how confident Klaus sounded. He wasn’t sure why though. Klaus had an excellent point. 

“Or how about with Clyde Mardon?” Klaus asked. Barry tensed, and he knew, without looking, that Len had too. 

Barry and Len hadn’t told him about that, and he knew with absolutely certainty that Mark and Joe hadn’t either. Which left only one option. Clyde Mardon himself. 

Joe looked back and forth between Barry and Klaus, as if he could figure out who had told Klaus about Clyde Mardon. 

“And what exactly do you think happened with Clyde Mardon?” Joe asked. His gun was currently aimed at Klaus, by Klaus hardly seemed bothered by it. 

“Oh detective, you think a gun’s gonna scare me? I was kidnaped and tortured by time traveling assassins, and as soon as I got away from them, traveled back in time and fought in a fucking war. I’m more afraid of eating the food that Roy makes here than I am of you. 

You’ve probably figured out by now that I’m with the rogues, which means I have powers, right? Well, it’s a Tuesday night, so why don’t we give the people here a show huh?” Klaus asked his eyes were starting to glow white. Barry hadn’t realized it, but while Klaus had been talking, he’d started to walk towards Joe. 

“Klaus, don’t you dare” Barry heard from behind him. Len. 

Klaus turned his attention to Len, and Barry was worried, if only for a second, that Klaus was going to make Clyde Mardon appear anyways. 

But Klaus let his eyes fade back to their natural colour, and all of his anger seemed to fade with it. 

“Whatever you say, boss” Klaus mumbled dejectedly. 

“Barry, you and I are going to have a serious talk about your choice in friends later.” Joe said, as he finally, finally turned around and left. 

Barry didn’t care if he had to tell Joe that he was dating Len. All he cared about right now was making sure Len was okay. 

He got Len out of the bar, and the second he did, Barry used his speed to get them back to their apartment. He watched as Len lay down comfortably on the couch in their living room. Barry was about to sit in the chair across from it, but Len pulled Barry down on top of him. 

“Barry, promise me you won’t ever step between me and a gun again” Len pleaded, his voice no more than a whisper. 

That was when Barry finally lost it. He broke down and cried. He wrapped his arms around Len’s neck, sobbing into his chest. 

“Fuck Len. I was s-so afraid I was going to lose you”’he sobbed, his words slightly muffled against Len’s chest. He felt Len wrap one around him protectively. His hand was gripping Barry’s waist tightly, but not in a painful way, it was more of a reassuring presence than anything. The other came up to cup the back of Barry’s head, running his fingers softly through Barry’s hair. 

“I can’t promise that you’ll never lose me, but Barry I promise you I will never leave you” Len told him. 

Barry sniffled, trying to collect himself. He looked up, meeting Len’s gaze. 

“You promise?” He asked. Len nodded, not breaking eye contact. Barry knew that Len was, as he liked to remind Barry, a liar and a thief. But Barry knew he was telling the truth this time. 

“I.... can I go get something? Quickly?” Barry asked. 

Len nodded. He didn’t move while Barry’s sped out of the apartment, quickly picking up something he had been keeping in Hartley’s appartement for the past six months. 

Less than a second later, he was back in their apartment, back in Len’s arms. Barry had one hand on the couch next to Len’s head to prop him up. The other was at his side, tightly clutching the small box he was about to show Len. 

“Len, I promise I’ll never leave you too” Barry told him. He brought the box up between the two of them. 

For the first time since Barry had met him, Len looked surprised. 

“Leonard Snart, will you marry me?” He asked, skillfully opening the box with one hand. Inside was a thick, white gold simple band. On top of the band, was a cluster of small diamonds, laid out in the shape of a snowflake. Cutting through the beautiful cluster of diamonds was a thin strip of yellow gold, in the shape of a lightning bolt. 

Barry was looking at Len expectingly, and for him, it felt like an eternity before Len answered. 

Len brought both of his hands to either side of Barry’s face before leaning in. He stopped a breath away from Barry’s lips. 

“God yes” he whispered before pressing their lips together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so happy I finally got some Barry/Len in one of my crossovers!!!
> 
> But like I said, I honestly had no idea where this was going until it just sort of happened.... I’m not even sorry
> 
> Let me know what you think!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the nice comments!
> 
> Guess who’s here! It’s only my favourite rogue with some huge plot points! Let me know what you think!

There was an awkward silence after Len and Barry left the bar. Klaus didn’t know what to say, so he waited for someone else to speak first. 

“So” Shawna said, breaking the tension that had been building. “You can see Clyde Mardon?” Her voice sounded hopeful, and he felt bad. 

“No. It was the cop that Clyde killed right before detective West killed him. Sorry.” He answered. Shawna visibly deflated. Klaus hated that he had to tell her that her boyfriend’s only brother, who was dead, wasn’t actually here. 

“Although, in my experience, if I can’t see someone, it’s because they’ve moved on to whatever ghosty afterlife there is out there” Klaus said, trying to offer her some small comfort. She gave him a weak smile, so it must have work a little bit. 

Shawna left again, returning a minute later with Mark, Axel, and Roy. Ben appeared next to Roy a few seconds later next to the dissipating cloud of blue whatever. God, Klaus still wasn’t used to seeing someone other that Five doing that. 

Ben and Roy sat down at the bar, listening as Shawna explained what had happened. While she did, Axel got back to work but Mark stood awkwardly where Shawna had left him. He was looking at Klaus in an almost uncomfortable way. 

“Shawna says you were ready to kill detective West because of what he did to Clyde.” Mark started. His voice was strained , and from the expression on his face, Klaus knew that this was just as awkward a conversation for Mark as it was for himself. 

So Klaus shrugged, trying to play it off as casual. 

“Well, detective West had more ghosts following him around than any cop should. Talking about people’s victims normally makes them uncomfortable and Clyde’s death seemed like the most à propos” he explained with a wave of his hand. 

Klaus did not know Mark very well, but he was expecting at most, a mumbled thanks, or maybe Mark just being less of a dick to him in general. He did not expect Mark to hug him. Why did people here like hugs so god damn much? He thought as he awkwardly hugged Mark back. 

This night could not get any weirder he though, as Mark pulled back, his eyes almost teary. Despite his emotional state, Mark was looking Klaus straight in the eyes. 

“Thank you” Mark said, his voice steady. Klaus was not used to this emotional a display, to such an open discussion. 

“That’s what family is supposed to be for, right?” Klaus asked, smiling at him. His statement was as much reassurance for Mark as it was a self-depreciating joke, but it seemed to make Mark laugh, which is was mattered. 

The night was just returning to normal when the bar door was slammed open once again. 

The man that walked in looked all kinds of dangerous. He was huge, somehow almost bigger than Klaus’ brother Luther, who was literally half giant ape. Not to mention the burn mark running down his arms. He was older, closer to Len’s age than Klaus’, and his eyes looked tired. As if he’d seen more than anyone should be able to handle. 

“Mick!” Axel yelled from his seat at the bar. The other rogues looked up, and most of them smiled at the newcomer. 

“Where the hell have you been? Or should I say when?” Lisa asked as she came out of the kitchen. She hadn’t been very busy since half the bar had cleared out for detective West’s arrival. 

“Get me a beer and I’ll tell you all about it” Mick offered and Lisa laughed. 

“Get your own damn beer Mick” she answered as the two of them made their way to the bar. 

“Never could tell you what to do, Lis” Mick said affectionately. He even ruffled Lisa’s hair as they sat down at he bar together. 

Klaus was skirting the edges of the bar. He really didn’t know how he was supposed to act around the new guy that everyone seemed to know and love. 

“Who the hell is he?” Klaus whispered to Mark, who had still been standing next to him. Mark gave him a strange look, before he seemed to realize something. 

“Oh! You haven’t met Mick yet. He’s the boss’s oldest and closest friend. They’re almost like brothers. Although, until the boss started bringing Barry around, everyone thought the two of them were together” Mark explained. 

“So he’s a rogue?” Klaus asked for clarification. Klaus knew himself, so did not want to accidentally talk about something he shouldn’t. 

“Who would Captain Cold be without Heatwave?” Mark asked as he walked back over to the bar. Klaus followed him over, still weary of Mick. 

Klaus stood next to Lisa, trying to listen in to whatever grand story Mick was telling, but he stopped the second Klaus arrived. 

“Wasn’t expecting to see you here yet Klaus” Mick said, as he patted Klaus on the shoulder. Klaus didn’t know what to think about that comment. His confusion must have shown because Mick laughed. 

“Sorry. I forget how time travel works sometimes.” Mick mumbled into the beer he had poured himself. God damnit. Of course he could time travel. Although, if he could time travel, that would explain why half of Five’s stupid math equations about time travel and the future wouldn’t work. 

“And Ben’s already here too?” Mick asked. His attention had shifted from his glass to Ben and Roy who were sitting beside him. He went to pat Ben on the shoulder, like he had with Klaus, only his hand never made contact. It just went straight through. 

“The hell?” Mick asked. “I thought your only power was the, well, tentacles” Mick said, wiggling his fingers as if to demonstrate. 

“I.... it’s Klaus’ powers that aren’t working all the way right now” Ben stuttered. He was blushing again. 

“I still don’t understand” Mick said. He was looked at Ben, then looked at the hand he still had in front of him. 

“He’s dead, Mick. We can only see Ben because of Klaus’ powers” Mark told him from his place beside Klaus. His voice was matter of fact, which, to be fair, Mark had known that Ben was dead for a while. He was expecting Mick to be sad, maybe angry, but he just looked confused. 

“I might be the furthest you could get from an expert on time travel, but how can Ben be dead now, if he’s alive in the future?” Mick asked. Klaus couldn’t blame him for the confusion. 

How the hell WAS Ben alive in the future? Everyone seemed to be thinking the same thing, as they all stared at Ben, who couldn’t take his eyes off of Roy. 

“I think we need to go visit the nerds again” Klaus mumbled, looking around at the rogues. Everyone nodded their agreement, probably still to stunned to speak.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry there’s no Clyde, but I feel like there’s already too many characters in this, and I just didn’t really think it was necessary to include him....
> 
> Yay sort of not dead Ben? 
> 
> Let me know what you think!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sooo sorry for the wait. I wrote a chapter for Klaus, then realized I couldn’t really put a Diego chapter after it, so I had to write the Diego chapter and post first. Let me know what you think!

Leave Diego alone for five minutes, and he gets himself arrested, Eudora thought with a sigh. She had just arrived in Central City, had only talked to one detective and a weird CSI, when she’d gotten the call. 

So here she was, at the Star city police station, to bail Diego out. The building looked like any old police station, besides a few places she could tell had recently been patched up. It was to be expected, she though as she pushed the front door open. This city was apparently host to its own vigilante. 

She was making her way to the reception desk, where a busy looking brunette was typing away at a computer, but was intercepted by one of the detectives. He police captain, she noticed, as he got closer. 

He was an older man but not too old. He almost balding, and looked like stress had added an extra five or ten years to his appearance. 

“Captain Lance, how can I help you...?” He asked as he examined her face. Trying to see if he recognized her, she realized. 

“Detective Patch. And I heard you picked someone up for harassing the mayor’s wife?” She answered. The captain sighed. 

“We were originally only going to keep him overnight, but when we found some.... interesting things on his person” the captain explained. Eudora had to roll her eyes at that. 

“Let me guess, exactly thirty two knives of all different sizes?” She asked. God damnit Diego, she thought, when the Captain nodded. 

“Can I see him?” She asked eventually. 

“The mayor is in there talking to him right now, if you want to wait here, you’re more than welcome.” He offered her. 

Eudora shook her head. As a cop, she knew the mayor should not have been able to see Diego, even if he’d been harassing his girlfriend. 

“As a detective, and that idiot’s friend, I’d like to be there for that. Especially since I know that only cops should be allowed to see him” said, her chin held high as if daring the captain to deny her. The detective sighed, looking dejected. 

“Fine, whatever. I’m done with both of those two” he mumbled. The detective led her to the interrogation room at the back of the station. Diego should not be getting interrogated by the mayor of all people. 

The captain motioned to the specific room that Diego was in, and promptly left. Eudora opened the door, which was apparently unlocked, and walked in. 

Immediately in front of her was Diego. He was in handcuffs, but that seemed to be it. He wasn’t even cuffed to the table. 

The man standing across from him instantly reminded her of Diego. He had a serious expression on his face. A matching half there beard. And stood tensely, the way she had learned to associate with Diego and his vigilante activities. 

He must be the masked man running around in Star city, she thought. Of course Diego had tried to harass his girlfriend. This was just the life she had to deal with, knowing the Hargreeves. 

“Who are you?” The man asked, glaring at her. 

“My apologies, Mr. mayor. I’m detective Patch. I’m here to make sure you don’t go all vigilante on my friend Diego” she said casually, motioning to him. 

The mayor’s expression changes from annoyed to angry, even if she could tell he was doing his best to hide it. 

“I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about” the mayor said, in what she was sure was the most polite voice he could manage. 

“Come on, I’ve know Diego for ten years. You seriously think I don’t know what a vigilante looks like, even outside the mask?” She asked with a smirk. She had all the leverage now. 

“How about this, Mr. mayor. You stop bothering my friend here, and I’ll forget this entire thing happened, including your secret identity” she offered, crossing her arms despite one still being in a cast. 

He mayor took a step closer to her, but Eudora didn’t move or back up. She knew she was right. 

“That sounds like a threat, detective” he told here. 

“Only if you continue to illegally harass my friend here” she answered, smiling at the irony of her own statement. Diego was here for having harassed the mayor’s girlfriend, after all. The mayor glared at her, but she didn’t back down. 

“I get it, Mr. mayor. You’re here to protect your girlfriend, because you love her. Diego is only here because he’s trying to find the man he loves. 

But don’t worry, when Diego gets out, we won’t be sticking around. There was a weird CSI in Central City that was definitely hiding something” she said. It was mostly directed at the mayor, but the last bit of information was for Diego too. 

The mayor, instead of looking happy that they would be leaving, seemed more upset than before. 

“By weird CSI, do you mean Barry Allen?” He asked. Eudora was shocked, to say the least. Vigilante or not, the mayor of Star City should not have known a random CSI from Central City. Unless....

Eudora shook her head. There was no way she’d met another vigilante, with an honest to god superpower, without noticing. It just wasn’t possible. 

“Can Diego leave now or not?”’she asked to change the subject. The mayor nodded, and produced a key for the handcuffs. 

Once Diego was free, and they were out of the building he finally spoke. 

“D-does that mean you know where Klaus is?” He asked, sounding more hopeful than she’d ever heard him. 

Eudora didn’t want to get his hopes up, but it looked like it was already too late for that. 

“I know that a CSI in Central City knows more than he let on” she answered truthfully. With that, the two of them got into her car, and started heading to Central.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Eudora Patch and know one can change my mind. Let me know what you think!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two posts in a day? I know I said it would never happen again, but here I go with a second post today. Let me know what you think!

Klaus was in STAR labs, again. Trying to figure out how to make Ben not dead. Again. It had been an entire week since Mick Rory had come back to the rogues, and Klaus was honestly starting to wonder if this had all been some sort of practical joke. 

The closest they had come to Ben being, well, not dead, was the time he’d kept a physical form for twenty minutes without Klaus’ help. Twenty minutes was pretty far off from Ben not being dead, at least in Klaus’ opinion. 

And the only reason they’d been able to get Ben to stay present for that long was because of Cisco’s powers, which were apparently a thing. He was able to open portals to other dimensions, on top of portals around their own world, and the ability to get a vibe of someone from an object they possessed. 

“I don’t know what we could possibly be trying today” Ben mumbled as they two of them walked into STAR labs. 

Klaus shrugged, because he wasn’t sure either. Unless Cisco or Barry had had some revelation last night, they were quickly running out of ideas. Not that they’d had many to begin with. 

The elevator ride down was quite, and Klaus was glad for it. With how much he’d been using his powers lately, he did not want to get stuck dealing with the ghosts at STAR labs. He’s heard that there were a lot. 

When they got to the bottom floor, an area that could only be described as the Flash’s center of operation, he paused. Cisco was looking over data on one of the computer screens frantically, and for a second, Klaus thought that Barry had had to go out and stop a crime. But Barry walked in from the medical room, disproving that theory. 

“Hey guys, I hate to be the one to say this, but I have a new theory” Cisco said, looking back and forth between Klaus and Ben. 

“I... don’t see how that’s a bad thing?” Klaus asked. Because really, having a way to make Ben not dead should be a good thing. Cisco shrugged, and Klaus did not at all like the sheepish look on Barry’s face right now. 

“So, my powers, or at least the part I think was keeping Ben here, work on the idea of me having something to connect to the person. What if, the thing that we’re missing here, is something to connect Ben to this world?” Cisco asked. 

And klaus could take a guess at where this was going. 

“We would need something of Ben’s, but dad threw out everything he owned” Klaus told them. Cisco didn’t look fazed by that, in fact, it looked like he had been expecting such an answer. 

“But your dad, the crazy scientist, wouldn’t have completely thrown away every possible piece of research he had on Ben, right?” Cisco asked hesitantly. And holy shit that sounded like exactly something dad would have done. 

“So, you’re saying someone is going to have to go to the academy to look for what, part of Ben’s body?” Klaus asked incredulously. He knew it was more than likely that dear old dad had kept something like that, but to have to look for it, at the academy that he’d just run from? 

“I’d settle for a blood sample for this theory” Cisco told him. Klaus was only marginally more okay with that. His problem with the plan hadn’t been the part about Ben’s body, however terrible that was. It had been the fact that Klaus would have to go back to the academy to look for it. But damnit, Ben had been there for Klaus so many times over the past few years. He couldn’t just turn his back on him now. 

 

A few hours, and a lot of convincing later, Klaus found himself on his way back the the academy, with none other than Lisa Snart. 

The two of them had been driving for almost three hours now. Well, Lisa had been driving while Klaus sat in the passenger seat and fiddled with the radio. 

It was only another ten minutes to town now, and the academy was not much further. 

“You sure you’re going to be okay?” Lisa asked. Her eyes flickered to him briefly from behind her gold framed sunglasses. 

Klaus shrugged, because, well, he didn’t know. He hoped he would be able to handle being back at the academy. But if Allison was there, if Luther was there, Klaus wasn’t sure how he’d be able to handle it. 

“You don’t have to go in, you know. As the sister of a world class thief, I’ve picked up a few tricks along the way” she told him with a smirk. 

Klaus smiled back at her. He both could and couldn’t believe that she was offering to break into the academy for him. He was under no illusions that Lisa was anything but a thief, despite only ever being a suspect in a few robberies. But there was a difference between taking a few shiny bracelets from a jewellery store, and breaking into the Umbrella Academy to steal a sample of blood of the long deceased number Six. 

“Thanks, but I think I’ll be okay” he told her, even if it was the furthest thing from the truth. But, well, as Len liked to say, he was a liar as well as a thief, and even if Klaus had become a master of deception, Lisa saw right through him. 

“I can go in with you if you want” she offered. This time Klaus agreed, just as Lisa pulled up to the front gate. 

Klaus got out of the car and made his way to the front door. He looked back to see Lisa only steps behind him. 

He stopped only long enough to roll his eyes at the stained glass umbrella academy logo that was on the door, before pushing it open. The door creaked, and Klaus winced at how loud it was. 

If anyone was here, they would definitely know that someone was coming in. The house looked completely empty though, and Klaus was grateful. It would have sucked if Luther was here. 

He made he way through the front hall, where someone had cleaned up the chandelier that had almost killed Luther when it fell. 

He continued, up two flights of stairs, until he got to the only place dear old dad would have kept anything important, his office. Lisa was following quietly behind him, and Klaus saw her hands trail over a few particularly shiny things. 

Dad’s office was a small space compared to the rest of the academy, but it was no less, well, rich was the only word that came to mind. 

The asshole actually had a painted portrait of himself hanging on the wall behind his desk. Who the hell does that? Klaus wondered as he started looking around. 

Lisa sat up onto the desk, watching Klaus go through one of the book shelves. 

“Why don’t you tell me about yourself? I don’t think I really know what you were like before Lenny took you in” she asked. 

Klaus stopped, hand halfway stretched towards a book. He looked back at her with a suspicious stare. 

“You don’t have to tell me” she said with a wave of her hand. “I’m just making conversation to keep myself distracted from the nice gold watch over there” she added with a smile. 

Klaus chuckled and went back to his search for, well, he wasn’t quite sure what. 

Physics book, physics book, physics book- 

“Klaus stop!” Lisa whisper-yelled. “Did you hear that?

“What? Is someone coming?” He whispered, turning to face her. She shook her head. 

“When you grabbed that book, the desk made a weird clicking noise, like there was a trap door or hidden compartment or something.” She explained, using her regular voice this time. 

Klaus couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Of course you would recognize that sound.” He said. Klaus was still clutching the book, not wanting to put it down in case it was more of a trap than a secret compartment situation. 

Klaus walked over to the desk and set the book down on it. Lisa, thankfully, hopped off the desk. She started feeling around the desk, looking for a seam, or something and Klaus had to admit, he never would have thought to do that. 

“Yes!” Lisa cheered as she stopped at a particular spot on the side of the desk. She knelt down next to it, and Klaus had to stop himself from commenting on how excited she looked. 

“This section here looks like it could just be taken right out” Lisa told him. He walked over and knelt down next to her and could see what she meant. 

In the middle of the intricately carved wooden desk, made to look like part of the design, was a small square that looked almost cut out. Smart bastard, Klaus thought. He hadn’t noticed this last time he’d raided dad’s office for valuables. 

“It’ll be the first time ever get mad about finding alcohol if that’s all dear old dad has stashed in here” Klaus mumbled as he reached out to the small wooden panel. 

Klaus touched the border of the square with one hand. He was going to trace the edge to see if he could find some or of purchase. But the second he made contact with it, the panel moved back and then to the side, like some kind of si-fi movie. 

And right behind it was a stand with seven vials of blood, numbered one to seven. Klaus carefully grabbed the stand and placed it on the desk. 

“These only have numbers on them, how are we supposed to know who’s is who’s?” Lisa asked. Klaus let out a sharp laugh. 

“Don’t you remember what I told you when Barry first brought me to Saint’s? Robot mom giving us names because-“ Lisa clues in, finishing his sentence. 

“Your dad only ever called you by your number. So what number was Ben?” She added, looking over the samples. 

“Number-“ Klaus froze mid sentence when the door started to creak open. Klaus pocketed Ben’s blood before the door fully opened to reveal Luther. Of course it had to be Luther, he thought bitterly. 

“Klaus? What are you doing in dad’s office? If you’re here to steal something else, put it back, especially dad’s good watch.” Luther ordered. 

Klaus spun around to see the shelf where dad’s watch had been sitting. He turned back and looked at Lisa, as if tho ask when the hell she’d had time to grab that. 

But Lisa was looking at Luther, and Klaus could see a dangerous glint in her eyes. Even if Klaus wanted to, which he absolutely did not, something about the crooked smile on her face made him sit back and watch whatever it was she was about to do. 

“You must be Luther” she stated, more so than asked. Luther seemed to realize for the first time that she was there and nodded hesitantly. At that, Lisa pulled out her gold gun so quickly, that Klaus had to wonder if she was the one with superspeed. 

Klaus knew that Luther was about to make a move, but before he could warn Lisa, she shot a beam of solid gold only millimetres from Luther’s feet. 

“Don’t even think about it” she said, as the liquid on the floor solidified, turning it to solid gold. 

“Now, since we’re all here, I think it’s time you did some grovelling. Or at the very least, apologizing” she told Luther, her gun now aimed at him. 

Luther was staring at her, as if trying to figure out who she was. 

“Look lady, I don’t know who you are, but I’ve never seen you before in my life. You must be thinking of someone else” Luther said. Klaus could tell Luther was annoyed, but was actually doing a somewhat okay job of hiding it. 

“The name’s Lisa Snart. You, Luther Hargreeves are definitely the one who hurt my family” she said. Luther’s eyes seemed to widen at that, although Klaus wasn’t sure why. 

“Snart? Like those criminals from Central city? Any time i was there I was warned to stay away from them, because of how cold-blooded they were. I-I would never make a move against them” he explained, and for the first time in, well, ever, Luther sounded truly terrified. Good, Klaus thought. 

“Oh but you did. You see, the rogues are a family, and a move against any of them is a move against all of us. So you’d better hope your apology to Klaus is good enough, or else you’ll have one more gold hand than Jaime Lannister.” She said, and Klaus laughed. 

“That would have been so much more threatening if Luther knew what game of thrones was” he said between laughs. 

“Klaus, how could you join the rogues? They’re terrible people who do nothing but terrorize their city. How could you throw away everything dad did-“ and that was when Klaus had enough. 

“Everything dad did? Like locking me up in a cemetery to help me get over my fear of ghost? Like letting you use me as a punching bag? 

And you’re just as bad as he was! You literally almost caused the apocalypse because you didn’t want to just be nice to Vanya! You had to go and lock her in a cage like the rest of have been for some twisted form of ‘training’” Klaus yelled. 

Luther looked shocked to say the least. Klaus had no idea why. All he’d done was state the facts. 

“Look Klaus, I know dad didn’t always make the best decisions, but he always had the greater good in mind. I can’t say why-“ Lisa fired, this time between Luther’s legs. 

“That doesn’t sound like an apology” she said. Luther sighed. 

“I’m sorry for what I did to you Klaus, and for what I let dad do to you” Luther mumbled. 

Lisa smiled sweetly at him and lowered her gun. Luther let out a breath of relief, and Klaus almost felt bad for the idiot. Almost. 

“We’ll just be going then” Klaus said. Luther nodded, stepping out of the way. As Lisa walked by Luther, she turn on him so quickly he didn’t have time to stop her from punching him in the face. 

“Don’t think of coming near my family again” she told him, and walked out, their dad’s watch in hand. Klaus was still laughing by the time they reached the car.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone finally punched Luther in the face! Yay Lisa! Sorry again for the wait for these 2 chapters!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> short chapter that is partly just filler, because I just want Ben to be alive soon, okay? 
> 
> Let me know what you think!

After his day trip to the academy with Lisa, things were back to, well, not normal, Klaus supposed. Nothing in Klaus’ life could ever have been considered normal. 

But, he was on his way to his shift at Saints and Sinners after having dropped offs Ben’s blood with the nerds. 

He hadn’t wanted to leave, but a Cisco’s insistence, and Lisa’s threat of having to work tomorrow morning, he hadn’t stuck around long. Klaus sighed. He did not feel like working another Tuesday night shift right now.

When he got to the bar, though, everything seemed different. Almost somber. Mark was cleaning glasses while Hartley set the tables up. He could see Roy in the kitchen preparing the food too. 

None of them were speaking though, and seemed to be avoiding Axel, who was sitting at a table in the corner. His shoulders were hunched, and there was a half empty glass of beer on the table in front of him. 

Every now and then Hartley would look back at Axel in concern, but that was the only indication that any of them were acknowledging his presence. 

Klaus wasn’t sure what was going on, but he was too curious to not at least try to find out. 

Mark gave Klaus a funny look when he poured himself a drink, more of a warning than anything, but didn’t say anything. With his drink in hand, Klaus walked over to the table Axel was sitting at. 

He sat down across from Axel and set his drink down on the table. Axel didn’t startle, only looked up to meet Klaus’ eyes. 

Well, now Klaus understood why everyone was walking on eggshells. Axel looked liked he’d been crying all day, and possibly most of the night, since it looked like he hadn’t gotten much sleep either. 

“What the fuck happened?” klaus asked, with his usual amount of tact and social abilities. 

“Klaus....” Hartley started from somewhere behind him. But Axel put his hand up, as if to dismiss whatever it was Hartley had been about to say. 

“‘S fine Hart. I’m getting pretty tired of people treating me like I’m made of glass anyways” Axel said. He took a sip of his drink before continuing. 

“My dad, he may not have been as shitty as yours, by he only started talking to me so I’d confess to some crimes he’d committed. 

They only ever found partial DNA, so his son having done it was the perfect excuse. But then he died. A year ago today” Axel explained. And yeah, that fucking sucked, was Klaus’ only thought. 

“I’d offer to hug you, but I think Hartley might kill me if I did” Klaus told him, because people around here seemed to like hugs. 

Klaus will never admit to the noise he made when Axel jumped across the table and hugged him. Although in his defence, Axel had just dumped both of their drinks all over him. 

Axel eventually, reluctantly let Klaus go when they heard someone clear their throat behind them. 

Klaus turned around, not even a little prepared to explain himself to Hartley, only to be face to face with Lisa instead. 

“I was going to tell you that you’re off the hook for your shift because Cisco wants to talk to you, but it looks like you’ll be stopping to get changed and drop Axel off at his place on your way there.” She said before walking back towards the kitchen. 

“Gonna have to start thieving to pay rent if I keep missing shifts like this” Klaus mumbled, as the got up to leave. 

They’d made it as far as the door when he hear Lisa yelling “you don’t even pay rent” at him from the kitchen. 

Axel let out a still teary laugh, but he seemed to be doing better than before. By the time they got back to the apartment building the rogues lived in, Axel was almost back to his usual weird self. 

Once Axel was safely inside, Klaus changed into something more comfortable, not that his leather pants were comfortable, and set out to Star Labs. 

 

The second Klaus got off the elevator in the labs, he was ready to turn around and leave. Klaus could hear yelling coming from what he’d started to refer to as the computer room, and it sounded all too much like a certain detective he’d hoped to never see again. 

Looks like detective West had finally decided to have that talk about Barry’s choice of friends, he thought. Although from the sound of it, there wasn’t much actual talking going on. And Klaus wasn’t sure if Barry had told detective West about being slightly more than friends with Len. 

Klaus hardly wanted to be here for this, but with the strange feeling he’d had of being watched both leaving the bar and on his way here, Klaus hardly wanted to leave either. 

Sitting in on the awkward talk/yelling match seemed much more interesting than getting murdered in a dark alley, Klaus decided as he continued on into the computer room. 

“Freeze!” Detective West yelled as Klaus walked into the room. The gun the detective had had aimed at Len a second ago was now pointed at Klaus. Barry and Cisco looked, well, frozen Klaus thought with a smile. 

“Anyone else getting a sense of déjà vu here?” Klaus asked as he rolled his eyes. 

Klaus could see Len on the other side of the room trying to hide his smirk at Klaus’ comment. 

“Look” detective West said “I don’t know why you rogues keep breaking in here, but I will be arresting you both for trespassing if you don’t leave”

“It’s not breaking in if you’re invited, Detective” Klaus said, echoing Len’s words from the first night Klaus had met him. Klaus wasn’t sure what he was more proud of, the smirk that Len couldn’t hide now, or Cisco’s laughter at detective West’s expression of horror, much like his initial reaction that night too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, sorry for how short this is, but I promise the next one will be a lot longer, and include the conversation between Barry and Joe :) 
> 
> Let me know what you think!


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not as long as I thought it would be, but definitely longer than the last chapter! Let me know what you think!

When Cisco told him they they had an update on Ben, Barry got to the labs as soon as he could. Which was to say, in less than a second. 

Cisco was in the med room, looking over a microscope, and mumbling to himself every now and then. Barry sighed. Whatever Cisco’s plan was, they would have to wait for Klaus to get here. 

Barry was about to sit down, prepared to wait a while, when he heard the elevator doors opening. 

“Wow Klaus, I thought it would take you a lot longer-“ Barry immediately stopped talking when Joe walked in. Shit. 

Joe crossed his arms. He hadn’t looked happy when he’d walked in, and now he looked flat out furious. 

“Why exactly are you expecting a superpowered junky, who has admitted to working with the rouges, to be stopping by? Considering this is the Flash’s base of operation?”Joe asked. 

Barry just sighed. He was not ready to have this conversation. He looked to Cisco for help, but he was busying himself with a text, completely ignoring Barry and Joe. 

He debated using his speed to run, or at the very least grab the phone out of Cisco’s hand. But he would need to have this conversation at some point, so he might as well get it over with. 

Barry sped out of the lab, running all the way to the apartment he shared with Len. 

Len was sitting on the couch, and the second he became aware of Barry’s presence, quickly flipped over whatever blueprints he’d been looking at. Thankfully he was only wearing jeans and a plain blue t-shirt instead of his captain cold outfit. 

“Joe’s at the labs” Barry stated. Len stood up immediately at his words. 

“He want to have that talk about your choice of friends?” Len asked. Barry could only nod. 

“Good thing we’re not friends then?” Len offered with a smirk, and Barry could tell he was trying to lighten the mood. But it’s not what he was hoping for. 

“I was actually thinking of telling him about us?” Barry asked, so quietly he was afraid he’d have to repeat himself. 

The smirk on Len’s face shifted to an honest, warm smile. It was the kind he knew were only reserved for a select few, and it made Barry smile back at him, despite what he was about to do. 

“If you’re sure” Len told him. And god Barry loved him so much. From the start, Len had made sure that Barry knew it was up to him who knew about their relationship. Len knew Barry had no interest in telling any of the rogues’ enemies about them, and other than that, Len hadn’t really cared. 

But there’s was a difference between telling Lisa Snart about it, and telling Joe West. 

“Thank you” Barry mumbled before grabbing Len’s hand and running back to the Labs with him. 

When they got back, what couldn’t have been more than two minutes later, Joe was already questioning Cisco about Barry’s whereabouts. 

“Joe” Barry started, but Joe’s eyes immediately went to Len, and the hand Barry was still holding. 

“You better start explaining now, Barry” Joe told him. His voice had taken on a hint of his cop profession, rather than that of a concerned father. 

“Joe, you’re right. I am friends with the rogues. They’re not bad people. 

And you know what, every single one of them knows my secret identity. Not because Len told them, but because I did. They’ve know for close to a year now and haven’t told anyone” Barry said, stoping to think over his next words carefully. Joe looked like he was about to interrupt, but Cisco best him to it. 

“Dude, I thought you said the two of you had only been together for a year? Why did the rogues find out that early on when you only told us like a month ago?” He protested. 

Joe looked from Cisco to Barry and Len’s entwined hands, a few times, before settling on Barry. 

“Tell me you’re not dating that criminal” Joe all but growled at him. Barry could see Joe slowly reaching for his gun. 

“You’re right, I’m not dating him. We’re engaged” Barry answered. Now, all pretence aside, Joe pulled his gun and had it aimed at Len. Again. 

“Barry, whatever that man is blackmailing you with-“ Barry cut him off with a laugh. Not that he found this funny. 

“You honesty think he’s blackmailing me? What the hell Joe?” Barry yelled at him. He was ready to grab the gun from Joe’s hand, when he heard he familiar ding of the elevator. 

Damnit, he thought, as Klaus walked in. Barry was to focused on stepping between Joe and whoever he happened to be point his gun at currently to hear what was happening, but eventually he got tired of having to justify himself, justify is own happiness, and just ran Joe back to the West family house. 

It wasn’t the most mature thing to do, but Joe was the one acting childish for once. 

“Now that that’s over, can you tell me what you have that could help Ben?” Barry heard Klaus ask as he got back. 

“Okay, so hear me out, but why were Ben’s powers?” Cisco asked. He was still standing next to the microscope, presumably looking at Ben’s blood. Gross. 

“He, um. He could summon tentacles from his chest?” Klaus told them. Barry didn’t even want to know what that meant Cisco was seeing in his blood. 

“I knew it!” Cisco yelled. “Ok, now that we have some of his blood, why don’t we try to bring him back again?” Cisco asked. He sounded way too optimistic when they were literally trying to not only bring someone back to life, but give them a body. 

Barry saw Len text someone, and seconds later, Ben appeared in the labs without a sound. He looked shy, almost hesitan, and Barry felt bad for him. He knew the Hargreeves has been treated like science experiments their entire lives, and this couldn’t be easy for Ben. 

He watched as Klaus gave Ben a solid form again, and then as Cisco grabbed Ben’s shoulder. 

Cisco used his powers, opening a portal around the two of them. The portal grew in size, fizzling and swirling around them. 

The lights began to flicker, and Barry would have been fine with that. But random lab equipment was starting to float around the room, reminding Barry of the day he was struck by lightning, the day he’d gotten his powers. 

Barry was starting to hyperventilate as a beaker floated by him, when Len was at his side, wrapping him up in a tight embrace. 

Len didn’t let go, even after everything crashed down to the ground.

“Did it work?” He heard Klaus ask. Everyone turned to look at Ben, who had dropped to his knees at some point. 

Ben leaned forward and threw up all over the floor. 

“It worked” Ben told them through a shaky breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I hope someone is as excited about Ben as I am! 
> 
> So It might be explained later on, but in case it isn’t: they were able to bring Ben back because of a combination of Klaus, Ben and Cisco’s powers. 
> 
> Klaus’ power is pretty obvious, but Ben power is that he could summon tentacles from his chest. Like he is a portal to another dimension. Cisco’s power, is to create portals to other dimensions, thus Ben has a body and is back y’all! 
> 
> Side note, when I was planning what would happen in each chapter, i literally just wrote “yay Ben!!!” for this chapter description


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who’s finally here!!!! It’s everyone’s favourite stalker :)
> 
> Let me know what you think!

Barry might look like an idiot, and most of the time, pretend to be one. But he had graduated early, top of his class with a double major in criminology and forensic science. He was also the Flash, and had literal super speed. 

So yeah, he was well aware that he was being followed. Len hadn’t had to call him to inform him of it. He tried not to be too offended that his boyfriend-his fiancé, he reminded himself, wanted to protect him. 

“You’re being followed” Len had stated when Barry had picked up the phone, without so much as a hello. Barry had rolled his eyes, but taken the time to glance out the window of the coffee shop he was currently in anyways. 

“You mean by someone other than you?” He asked jokingly. CC Jitters was right across the street from the police station, and he knew Len liked to sit there and watch the comings and goings of the cops sometimes. 

So it was no surprise that Len was sitting in a booth on the other side of the coffee shop. His ball cap did nothing to hide his face from Barry. He knew Len too well. 

He shot Len a warning glare, and Len put up the one hand not holding his phone in defence. 

But Barry’s reply was cut off by the barista calling out his name. He hung up and quickly grabbed his coffee before heading over to the table Len was sitting at. 

“Why do you look so happy at the concept of being followed?” Len asked when he sat down. Barry, who couldn’t keep the smile off his face, was more than happy to answer. 

“Looks like I’m finally one step ahead of the great mind of Captain Cold. 

The angry guy sitting in the almost broken down car, parked just a block down the street? That’s Klaus and Ben’s brother. Diego” he informed Len. Barry tried not to laugh when Len choked on his coffee. When Len’s coughing fit was done, he finally spoke. 

“At least we don’t have to track him down to tell him Ben’s alive?” He offered, still more of a question than a statement. 

“Len, I know you don’t trust Klaus and Ben’s family, but it sounds like Diego and Vanya at least, cared about them. Hell, I think they all cared about Ben. 

But Ben did specifically ask us tell Diego, Vanya and Five where he was if we had the chance” Barry reminded him softly. Len sighed. 

“Then I guess we should go tell your stalker where his brothers are” Len mumbled. His eyes were glued to the table. 

“I know family is a touchy subject for you, Len, so I can go talk to Diego if you want. You don’t have to come” Barry offered, and Len looked up at him incredulously. 

“You really think I’m going to leave you alone with someone who’s that proficient with knives?” Len asked. Barry rolled his eyes, despite the warm feeling he felt at the thought of Len wanting to protect him. 

Barry quickly finished his coffee. He took the time to take the lid off and properly recycle the paper cup, much to Len’s annoyance. 

Once outside the coffee shop, it was a short walk to the car that Diego was sitting in. 

Barry reached out and grabbed Len’s hand, for no reason other than wanting to feel the comfort. It definitely had nothing to do with the ring he could feel on Len’s finger. 

Len turned to him with a questioning look, but didn’t retract his hands for which Barry was grateful. 

The car that Diego seemed to be using as his base of operation was only a block or so down the street. Barry could see the rust on it from where they were, and as they approached, it only looked more best up. 

Diego himself, was sitting in the driver’s seat. He had one hand on the steering wheel, despite the car being off, and his chin was resting on his hand. 

His head was turned, since he was looking out at the police station, and Barry had to stop himself from gasping at the scar that ran down the side of his head. 

Barry leaned in close to Len as they continued to walk. 

“How should we do this?” He asked. Len had always been the better planner, after all. Len just shrugged, and mumbled that it was Barry’s plan. 

So Barry decided to go for the easiest option. He reluctantly let go of Len’s hand and walked up to the car. 

Diego seemed to be too focused on the police station, so Barry knocked politely on the passenger side door. If there was a window, which he highly doubted, it must have been rolled down, since the space where it should be was wide open. 

Diego’s head shot up. He turned around, and somehow he already had a knife in his hand. And Barry thought he was the one with super speed. 

“Who are you and what do you want?” Diego asked, almost a growl. The knife he was brandishing at them couldn’t be more than an inch or two in length, but Barry knew that it wouldn’t matter. 

“My name is Barry Allen. And I know where your brothers are.” He said, not wanting to beat around the bush. 

Rather than lower the knife, like Barry had expected, Diego levelled him with glare. 

“What do you mean ‘brothers’?” He asked, and yeah, Barry supposed that was a valid question. 

“You know the basics of Klaus’ powers, right?” He asked. Diego nodded, still refusing to lower the knife. 

“Well, Klaus, along with my friend Cisco, were able to bring Ben back to life. I can tell you where Ben is, where they both are, if you want?” He offered. 

He saw Diego’s eyes narrow at the statement. He adjusted his grip on the knife, tightening his hold on the handle. 

“I’ve been following you for the past day or two, so I know that at the very least, you know Klaus. But that’s not enough to make me trust you” Diego told them. 

Barry had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. Len stepped forward, and spoke for the first time. 

“I know what it’s like to not trust people. So how about something that only you and Ben knew about, like the last thing the two of you talked about before he died?” Len offered. 

He saw Diego reluctantly nod. Barry knew, from his own experiences with his mother's murder, and Len’s general mistrust for anyone, what it was like. The weariness that came with any new person you met. 

“You asked Ben why his name was Ben. You, Vanya, even Klaus had cultural names. You asked him why the only asian kid in the family was named Ben.” Lent told him. 

Barry knew the story. Knew how it would end. Ben had told all of them in case one of his more paranoid siblings had shown up first. But that didn’t make it any less sad. 

“He told you that he didn’t want to be ‘number six’ because of the monster that had given him that name. But he didn’t want something related to the people that cared so little about him, they sold him off to the highest bidder. 

So he let your mom pick a name that she wanted. Something that meant something to her, since she was the only good parental figure any of you ever had.” Len explained. 

Barry could see the tears in Diego’s eyes. He knew they’d convinced him. That they’d won him over. 

“Ben’s a-alive?” Diego stuttered. He finally, slowly, lowered the knife he’d been holding. Barry nodded, leaning down so his face was level with Diego’s. 

“T-Tell me where t-they a-are?” He asked. God Barry felt so sympathetic for him.

“They’re in an apparent building that Len owns” Barry said, gesturing towards Len who was still standing next to him. 

“We can show you where, if you want” Barry offered. He was not at all shocked when Diego nodded and got out of the car. Barry straightened up, and watches as Diego made his way around the car and onto the sidewalk, until he was standing in front of them. 

“P-please?” He asked, his voice cracking on the word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I wasn’t planning on writing this chapter, I was just going to leave it out and skip right to the next one, but it will make so much more sense with this? 
> 
> Anyways, let me know what you think!


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So.... when I was planning this fic, I only had 2 scenes that I had planned out ahead of time, Klaus and Felicity meeting on the bus, and this entire chapter....
> 
> Let me know what you think!

Ben felt weird, if for no reason other than being able to feel at all. Everything was so different from when he’d been dead. It was just so much.... more, he supposed. 

The body, his body, Ben kept having to remind himself, was acting like a normal body should. He had to eat, had to sleep, and wasn’t able to just walk through walls anymore. 

That last bit sort of sucked, but not having to rely on Klaus’ powers to be seen? To be touched? He wouldn’t trade his new life for anything. Like right now. He was cuddled up in bed with Roy. 

They hadn’t done anything, Roy wanted to make sure Ben felt comfortable in his newly resurrected state before they did anything beyond kissing. But it felt amazing just to be pressed up against him. Roy was slotted behind him, his front pressed up against Ben’s back, an arm slung around his waist. 

It was perfect, but he was exhausted, and a little hungry if he was being honest. It was ridiculous. He had done nothing all day, other than watch Roy at work like he usually did. And it was so early, the sun hadn’t even started to set. 

His stomach growled, and god was that ever a weird feeling, he thought as Roy gently kissed the back of his neck. 

“Do you want me to make you something to eat?” Roy offered. He was so close Ben could feel his breath ghosting over the back of his neck. 

“No, I can go out and get something” Ben answered. He may have been dead for the past ten years, but he absolutely knew that Roy’s cooking was terrible. 

He heard Roy mumble a protest about his cooking abilities, but he let Ben get up without much of a fight. 

Ben stood up and threw on a pair jeans and a t-shirt. He could feel Roy watching him the entire time, but it didn’t make him uncomfortable. Quite the opposite actually. 

Ben smiled as he turned to face Roy, now fully dressed. 

“Is Chinese food okay?” He asked. Ben smiled when Roy nodded. Having cravings was one of the many things he was still getting used to with his new body, and Roy seemed to be willing to indulge him. 

He grabbed Roy’s wallet off the bedside table, and made his way to the small restaurant down the street. 

 

Diego stood outside the door of an apartment that apparently belonged to Ben. He was still trying to wrap his head around it. 

He was still holding the piece of paper that Barry had given him with Ben and Klaus’ addresses in a shaky hand. It took all he had to pocket it rather than drop it, before he knocked on the door of Ben’s apartment. 

Diego heard shuffling from inside, then the click of a lock. The door opened to reveal a man that was definitely not Ben. 

The man had short brown hair that was sticking up in every direction. Diego could also see the fient traces of a hickey just underneath the collar of his shirt. 

Shit, he must be at the wrong apartment, maybe even the wrong building. Maybe Ben wasn’t alive and the was all some elaborate trick. He was turning around to leave when the guy that had opened the door sighed. 

“You must be Diego” he said, causing Diego to turn back around towards him. 

“If you’re looking for Ben, you’re in the right place. He’ll be back in a few minutes if you want to come in and wait” the stranger offered. 

Well, if this was all just some elaborate trick and Diego got murdered, at least he’d still be able to talk to Klaus, he thought, as he followed the stranger inside. 

The front door led them immediately into the living room, which seemed nice enough. There was a long black couch on his left, and a television opposite of it. 

“So” Diego started awkwardly. He was still standing next to the door, even after his host had taken a seat on the couch. 

“Not to be rude, but who are you? And how do you know Ben?” Diego eventually asked. He was still looking around the apartment, trying to find something, anything to explain what the hell was going on. 

When he finally looked at the stranger, the man was smiling. 

“The name’s Roy. I’m Ben’s boyfriend” the stranger -Roy- told him, and Diego was shocked. 

“He’s been alive for what, a day or two, and you’re already dating?” Diego asked. He wasn’t sure how to feel about that. 

“Hey, it’s not like that. We’ve been, together, I guess you would call it, for almost two months now.” Roy explained. 

“When he was d-dead?” Diego asked. He found that hard to believe, but Roy nodded. 

“I’m not sure who told you where to find Ben, but I doubt they told you about the rest of us, right?” Roy asked, and it was Diego’s turn to nod. 

“Most of the people that live in this building, and that work with us, have powers. I won’t go into detail on everyone, but mine are a bit, different. 

I can manipulate people’s emotions by making my eyes flash different colours. Because of that, I can also see people’s emotions, like a thin glow of light around them. But Ben was dead when I met him. I couldn’t see what he was feeling, and it was, refreshing I guess” he explained. 

Diego wanted to say something, anything, but he couldn’t. He was saved from having to answer when he heard the handle of the door behind him being turned. 

The door opened and Diego was almost overwhelmed by the sight of Ben. He was casually stepping into the apartment, carrying a bag of takeout food. 

Ben almost dropped it when he saw Diego, and then again in his rush to put it down. Ben ran up to him, and threw his arms around Diego. 

“B-Ben?” He asked, almost afraid that this wasn’t real. That somehow it was just Klaus’ powers getting stronger, like when Vanya had been able to hug him. 

“Yeah Dee. Klaus really did it” Ben mumbled. Despite Ben’s words, despite the warmth he could feel coming off of Ben, Diego still had a hard time believing it. It was just too good to be true. 

“Now, do you want to go see Klaus, or do you want proof that I’m really not dead first?” Ben asked, a smirk on his face. Diego had no idea why Ben thought he would want to see Klaus now. Especially since Ben was, more than likely, alive. 

“I-I. You have p-proof?” He asked hesitantly. Ben took a step back, and Diego noticed one of his knives gleaming in Ben’s hand. 

“W-what-“ he stopped when Ben brought the knife up to his palm and made a small cut. And he was bleeding. Ghosts didn’t bleed, his mind supplied helpfully. 

“So, I’m guessing you want to go see Klaus now?” Ben asked, as he held the knife out for Diego to take back. 

Diego hesitantly grabbed the knife from him and put it back in the pouch on his belt. He’d only brought a few, so it was even more of a surprise that Ben had been able to take one. 

“I.... d-don’t know what you mean?” He said, cursing himself for how uncertain he sounded. He should want to spend time with his newly resurrected brother, not chasing after the other brother he felt like he’d lost. 

Ben rolled his eyes, but was smiling affectionately at him. Diego always wondered how Ben was able to keep suck a carefree happiness about him, given how messed up their lives were. 

“Come on, I know you want to see him. And he should be back from work any minute now” Ben said. And since when did Klaus have a job? He wondered. The more he heard, the more it seemed like everything had changed. 

“Go on, Dee. He’s two doors down and on the left” Ben told him. Diego tried to make it look like he didn’t run out on Ben. He tried.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is anyone else crying? I definitely am. Let me know what you think!
> 
> Side note, this chapter was described as ‘yay Ben part 2’ un my notes :)


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for how long this took! Here’s the long awaited reunion! Let me know what you think!

Klaus was trilled he’d gotten the early shift at work today. It meant he hadn’t had to deal with customers, or the public in general. Bringing someone back from the dead really took a lot out of you, he thought, as he pushed the door to his apartment open. 

He threw his keys and his phone onto the small wooden table at the front entrance, not caring that his keys slid off and onto the floor. Fuck he was exhausted. 

Klaus flopped down dramatically onto the couch. He was ready to fall asleep, but a knock on the door interrupted any potential sleep he might get. 

Klaus groaned and stood up, despite aching in his muscles. But he wanted to give whoever it was a piece of his mind for showing up after his shift. 

Only Axel would be rude enough, or oblivious enough to be there, he thought, grabbing the handle and yanking the door open. 

“Axel, for the hundredth time, I didn’t take your... knives” he finished as he was greeted with the sight of Diego at his door. 

Diego was standing awkwardly in the doorway, looking uncomfortable as hell. And he still managed to look breathtaking though. Fuck Klaus wanted nothing more than to reach out and touch him. 

“F-found someone else t-to steal knives f-from?” He asked. Klaus knew it was meant to be sarcastic, but it came across in a way he hadn’t expected. God, if he didn’t know any better, Klaus would have thought Diego sounded jealous. 

“Axel has almost stabbed someone for taking his beer. I haven’t touched anything of his” Klaus answered with a roll of his eyes. 

“Now, I’m sure you didn’t come all this way just to see little old me.” His said, making sure to be as dramatic as he could when gesturing to himself with a wave, “So who’s causing the apocalypse this time?” 

“I-I-I” Diego tried, but couldn’t seem to get the words out. Klaus waited patiently, as Diego took a deep breath to steady himself. 

“I’m sorry” he managed to get out without stuttering. “I’ll j-just l-leave. I s-shouldn’t have j-just drop b-by” he stuttered. Diego took a step back, and then another. 

“Wait” Klaus called before Diego could retreat any further. Diego paused. He looked torn between following Klaus into his apartment, and turning and running in the opposite direction. 

“There’s no pressing threats? No immediate danger?” He asked, just to be sure. Diego shook his head, so Klaus continued. It seemed so impossible, ridiculous even, that Diego was here without the threat of the apocalypse. 

“So you honestly are just here to see me?” He asked. The world not ending was one thing, but Diego actually caring about him, enough to track him down was another, completely unexpected situation. So when Diego nodded, Klaus let out a sigh.

“Okay fine, come in, but I’m not going back to that shit hole” Klaus informed him. He didn’t plan on going back to the academy, ever, really. But he still was surprised at how serious his words had come across. 

 

Diego didn’t say a word as he followed Klaus into the apartment. What was he supposed to say? Klaus had a life here. He had friends, a job, and wasn’t even using any more. 

What right did Diego have to barge into his life and try to change everything? Change anything? Especially when Klaus thought the only reason Diego would be here, looking for him, was some kind of emergency. 

That had stung, he thought, as he followed Klaus into his apartment. It was the same layout as Ben and Roy’s had been. The front door opened into the living room, but Klaus took a right turn down a hallway that led to a kitchen. 

Klaus had never been good at cooking. He had, in fact, been pretty bad at it. So when Klaus only took out the necessities for coffee, Diego was glad to see that something, at least, hadn’t changed. 

Diego remained silent as Klaus continued on making coffee. It wasn’t until Klaus had poured two cups, and was handing one to Diego that Klaus finally broke the tense silence. 

“So” Klaus started, pausing to take a sip from the far too bright pink cup he was holding. 

“You wanted to see me. Does this have anything to do with my recent, visit to the academy?” He asked. Diego was shocked to say the least. Klaus had been back to the academy?

Klaus sighed as he ran a hand through his long curls. Had Klaus’ hair always been that long? Diego wondered as Klaus sat up on the kitchen counter. 

Diego couldn’t help but notice how comfortable Klaus looked here. The way he was sitting loosely, he looked relaxed. Like he didn’t expect someone to burst through the door at any moment. Wouldn’t that be nice, Diego thought as Klaus continued. 

“So, no one’s dying, and you apparently don’t know that my friend almost shot Luther when we went to steal some of Ben’ blood to bring him back. So why are you here?” Klaus asked. Diego could see the scrutiny in Klaus’ eyes. Klaus may have been as paranoid as any of them, but it hurt that he didn’t trust Diego, apparently at all. 

I love you, he wanted to say. 

“I was worried about you” is what he managed instead. At least he hadn’t stuttered this time. Diego did his best to keep his expression open, honest, so Klaus could see that he meant it. 

The hard mask Klaus had put up the second he’d seen Diego seemed to slip away at his words. Diego tried not to be too happy about it. Based on his expression, Klaus looked almost as nervous as Diego felt. Diego had no idea why. 

Klaus began to say something, but his words were lost to the blaring of an alarm. It sounded like it was coming from the cellphone on the counter next to Klaus, but Diego hadn’t been aware phones could be this loud. It almost reminded him of the alarms at the academy any time there was a surprise training activity. 

He watched Klaus scramble to pick up the phone and turn it off with a curse, almost dropping his coffee in the process. 

“If Barry’s not already dead I’m going to kill him myself” Klaus groaned as he jumped down from the countertop. What the hell was going on? He wondered as he followed Klaus out the door. 

“How do you feel about meeting some of my friends?” Klaus asked. He seemed hesitant for the first time. 

Diego nodded, despite how terrified he felt. He didn’t want to mess things up, especially when Klaus had just told him he wasn’t leaving this place, these people. Especially not for the bullshit that was the academy. 

So he quietly followed Klaus out the door towards whatever stupid decision Barry had made. Diego wasn’t sure what he had been expecting, but it certainly hadn’t been a run down lab.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ......so they're both idiots...... sorry they didn’t get together right away, but it seemed a bit unrealistic? Let me know what you think!


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for how long this took! I had honestly so many ideas of who would be at the lab, but had to settle for Oliver and Felicity, just plot wise. Anyways, let me know what you think!

Klaus got to the labs as quickly as he could, Diego not far behind him. By now he’d calmed down at least a little bit, and probably wouldn’t kill Barry if nothing was wrong. Probably. 

He followed the long hallway he’d gotten used to over the past few weeks. Klaus would never admit that he’d gotten lost, only once, but now he knew the path to he elevator by heart. 

The two of them got to the room where all of the computers were, and Klaus was surprised, if not a little relieved, to see Barry there, uninjured and not even wearing his super suit. 

But there were two people standing with Barry that Klaus had never seen in the super secret, superhero’s base of operation before. 

The man standing next to Barry was tall, with short, dark hair and the beginnings of a beard. He was wearing a weird green outfit that almost looked like it was made out of the same material as Barry’s Flash costume. 

On the man’s other side, was the girl Klaus had sat next to on the bus, on his way to Central City. Um, what? They still hadn’t noticed Klaus and Diego’s entrance, so Klaus spoke up. 

“Bus girl!” He greeted loudly, drawing their attention to him. He heard Diego mumble a “god damnit Klaus” from behind him, but that did absolutely nothing to deter him. 

The man in the green suit tensed. He reached behind himself, as if instinctively, before realizing he hadn’t brought whatever it was with him and lowered his arm. 

The girl he’d sat next to on the bus, who’s name he was almost certain was Felicity, stared at him. Her expression went from confusion to understanding in seconds, and then she was smiling at him. 

“Klaus! I really hope you haven’t been calling me ‘bus girl’ in your head this entire time, not that I expected you to be thinking about me, but you know, it’s just a strange name, if you were to think of me?” She trailed off. 

She let out a nervous laugh, as Barry looked back and forth between them.

“I sat next to Felicity on the bus, when I left home. We talked after I woke up screaming from a nightmare” Klaus told them. Barry seemed content with the explanation, but the guy in the leather suit seemed, if anything, more suspicious. 

“There’s no way that could be a coincidence. He sat next to Felicity on the bus, and now he somehow knows about Barry and al his superhero activities?” He said. Klaus just rolled his eyes at the statement. 

“I was pretty high for most of that day, so it’s honestly surprising that I remember any of it.” Klaus answered. He hadn’t noticed before, but Diego had moved closer to him. He also seemed to be reaching for one of the knives Klaus knew he kept at his hip, even when he was dressed down like that. 

“You know what, no. It’s a total coincidence. I found Klaus sitting in a pool of blood after his other brother Ben killed two members of a crime family to keep him alive. 

I helped him get off the streets, and Cisco is even helping him with his addiction. Because in case you’ve forgotten, Oliver, helping people is what heroes do” Barry answered. Damn, Klaus was almost impressed by the speech. But,

“Wait a second. Does that mean the green leather suit isn’t just some fetish gear? Why do I keep meeting crazy people with powers?” Klaus mumbled, mostly to himself. 

Diego snorted, and was about to respond when the other hero, vigilante, whatever he was, spoke up. 

“You think I’ve forgotten what heroes are supposed to do? I didn’t even come here to talk about these two” he said, gesturing to Klaus and Diego. Oliver’s gaze was solely focused on Barry the entire time. 

“I came here, to find out if you really were engaged to one of the Flash’s worst villains” he said, crossing his arms as if to demonstrate just how serious he was. 

Oh Barry was in trouble now, Klaus thought, as Barry ran out of the lab at super speed. 

A second later, a very distinctive “ouch!” could be heard from Cisco in the distance. But Barry didn’t come back after that. He didn’t return for over a minute, and Klaus was starting to get worried. 

“I told you to be nice about it” he heard Felicity mumble. 

Finally, after a What could only have been another two minutes of awkward silence, Barry was back. With Len, who wasn’t in his Captain Cold outfit, because Barry had apparently taken the time to put on THE blue parka. 

“Scarlet, as much as I love seeing you in that coat, this is a little dramatic, even for us” Len said. This time Klaus couldn’t stop himself from laughing. 

 

Len heard Klaus laugh at his comment, glad that at least someone found this situation funny. He was also glad to see that Klaus’ brother Diego had apparently found him. He was standing next to Klaus, and looked extremely uncomfortable. 

Len knew that if Klaus wasn’t here, Diego would have run. Would have gotten out of here the second things started looking bad. He knew, because it’s exactly what he would have done if Barry wasn’t here. 

And at least Diego had his weird, all black, vigilante outfit on. Len hadn’t been able to wear the parka, since, well, Barry had put it on as they were leaving. 

It was a sight he absolutely loved, especially when Barry was wearing only the parka, but right now he would have preferred to look at least a little intimidating. It helped somewhat, that his cold gun was now visible at his hip, but he liked a certain element of surprise, especially when making an entrance. 

“Hello Mr. Queen. Barry tells me you found out about our, engagement” he said. 

Oliver, the Green Arrow, whatever name he was going by these days, frowned at his words. 

“Cisco may have mentioned it” he answered. 

“Well, then let me explain. Yes, I’m a terrible person. I’m a liar and a theif, and I like what I do. I’m good at it. But none of that even comes close to being as important to me as Barry.” He told them. 

Felicity, the Arrow’s tech genius actually ‘aw’ed’ st his words. He tried to hide his satisfaction at her reaction. 

“Now, I know you didn’t come all this way just to questions Barry about me, or you wouldn’t have brought the tech support” he said, gesturing to Felicity. “So what’s got the Green Arrow so upset, he had to leave town?” 

Oliver glared at him. 

“You want the truth? He’s not the only one that’s been looking into your newest rogues” Oliver answered, gesturing to Diego. 

“But somehow, the man that had over thirty knives on him was the least dangerous so far. 

There’s a woman with the ability to brainwash people that’s been asking around for someone named Klaus. Said something about he and Lisa Snart almost shooting someone she cared about” Oliver explained.

Shit, Len thought. This was not good. In fact, it was bad. Very bad. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...... again, sorry this took so long and was mostly just plot progression. Let me know what you think!


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omg guess who’s finally here! For real this time! Side note, I don’t have a favourite rogue, but if I had to pick it’s probably Axel Walker, so not really sorry he gets a chapter! Let me know what you think!

Axel Walker would be the first to admit that he liked trouble. Liked the attention it brought. Absolutely revelled in the chaos that normally came with it. 

But that didn’t mean he was actively seeking it all the time. Like right now, for instance. Axel was minding his own business, working behind the bar at Saints and Sinners, when some new walked in. 

Axel has never seen her before. He was sure of that. She was tall, had beautiful long black hair that framed her darker face perfectly, but there was a huge bandage on her neck. 

When it came to her outfit, Axel had spent enough time around Lisa to know that all of this woman’s clothing was fresh off the runway, if it had even gotten to the runway yet. 

But it wasn’t her beauty, expensive taste, or even the injury to her throat that gave it away. It was the small, round tattoo on her arm that did. It was so small that most would have missed it. 

But Axel had seen the Umbrella academy tattoo on Klaus and Ben enough that he knew she was one of them. And he was familiar enough with the Hargreeves family to know what her powers were. 

What had he ever done to deserve this mess? He wondered, as she sat down in front of him at the bar. He watched her raise her hands, without saying a word. 

Allison didn’t have time to sign the word ‘rumour’ before Axel had a knife pressed against the bandage on her neck. 

“Finish that sign and you’re dead” he threatened, making sure to put as much venom in his voice as he could. 

The other rogues seemed to finally have realized something was going on. 

“Axel, what the fuck happened to the no weapons policy?” Roy asked from across the room. The bar patrons didn’t seem bothered by the interaction, if anything, they seemed more interested in seeing the outcome. 

“Well excuse me for not wanting to experience any more of the Hargreeves’ powers. One was more than enough for some of us, Roy” he answered just to be rude to Roy. Axel may have asked about Ben, and the tentacles and, well, his nose may still be healing after that particular conversation. 

Roy rolled his eyes, before seeming to understand the implications. 

“If she hadn’t said anything, why are you holding her at knifepoint?” Roy asked with a sigh, as he walked over to them. He casually threw the towel he’d been using to wipe down tables behind the bar and sat down next to Allison. 

“Well, you see this nice bandage on her neck?” He pressed the knife only the slightest bit harder against her neck “Apparently she’s lost her voice, but her powers still work with sign language” Axel informed him. That earned him a surprised laugh from Roy. 

“And what, she did so little research on the rogues that she didn’t even know we had a deaf member and know sign language?” Roy asked incredulously. He looked back and forth between Allison and Axel, before seeming to realize that that was exactly what had happened. 

“Ben is going to think this is hilarious” Roy said, and Axel honestly wasn’t sure if the comment was directed at him or at Allison. Either way, he smiled maniacally at Allison, who definitely flinched away from him. It only made him smile more. 

“Now, Allison, would you be so kind as to follow us” Axel asked her, though she didn’t have much of a choice. He jumped over the bar, not even startling the patron Roy had been sitting next to. 

 

Wherever these two men were bringing Allison, she knew there was no chance of finding her way out. 

The second they’d put her in the back of a van, they had also blindfolded her. So now she was not only in an unfamiliar city, her hands tied behind her back to prevent her from using her powers, but she also had no idea where she was. 

God she really needed to stop getting herself into these situations, she thought, as the car came to an abrupt stop. 

“Not a word from you” she heard one of them say. The one that had threatened to killed her, she thought as she nodded frantically. Not that she could speak right now. 

“Same goes for you for now, Axel” the other one said. His voice was kind, something that seemed so out of place for the people that had just kidnapped her. 

She heard a loud crash followed by the sound of metal scraping against metal. It was loud enough to make here jump. 

“You guys do know this is a secret base, right?” She heard a third voice say. He sounded resigned, like these two had shown up unannounced many times before. Allison didn’t know how to feel about that. 

“Not just that, but the secret base of your super secret, superhero nemesis?” The third voice continued, this time with sounding slightly annoyed. 

“Is Snart here or not? Ben said they both would be, and I have something they’ll both want to see” the kinder of her two original kidnappers asked. Snart. There it was. That name that even had the great Regional Hargreeves afraid. 

“I swear, if you two touch anything, I’m leaving you in an alternate universe where Snart is so good, he ends up as the mayor.” The third voice threatened. Well, it sounded like a threat, but Allison wasn’t sure how exactly someone being the mayor was a threat. 

“Geez okay, we’re on our best behaviour” the one that had threatened her, Axel, answered. 

The car moved forward, maybe a few more feet, before she heard the same scraping of metal against metal, behind her this time. After that, the engine was cut, and two of the car doors opened. 

“So, what was so important that you had to come here, of all places, just to see your boss?” The third voice asked. 

She heard the door to her right open, and tried to shift away, but it was too difficult, with her hands tied and blindfolded.

“I changed my mind. Leaving you somewhere would be too easy. You two can deal with the absolute shit show that this is going to cause.” the third voice said. 

Allison felt someone’s hand brush against her face, and she tried not to flinch as the blindfold was removed. 

When her eyes adjusted to the brightness around her, Allison took in her surroundings. Everything was white, metallic, almost clinical looking. 

She hadn’t know the Snarts, Rogues as they were calling themselves these days, owned a property like this. As far as she knew, they only owned apartment buildings and a bar. Legitimately, at least. 

The third person, the one only one that seemed to be even the slightest bit off put by her kidnaping was standing awkwardly next to the van. 

He had long, wavy black hair that came down to his shoulders. He was wearing a t-shit with some bright, graphic design on it, but Allison didn’t know what it was supposed to be. 

“Hi, I’m Cisco. Sorry about the restraints, but we can’t exactly have you brainwashing everyone here” he greeted. 

Without another word, he turned around, and began walking away. She followed him down a narrow hallway, her two kidnappers not far behind. 

God, she wished she wasn’t alone in all this right now, she thought, as they continued down the hall. But well, Allison should have known to be more careful of what she wished for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay actual pot progression! Sorry for the cliffhanger, but again, yay Axel? Let me know what you think!


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am soooo sorry for how long this took to post. But well, I couldn’t settle for how I wanted this to go, so I wrote and re-wrote it about 4 times. I’m still not happy with how it went, but this is the only time I didn’t stop a quarter of the way through and restart. 
> 
> Let me know what you think!

Klaus sighed as he walked down the stupidly long hallway at Star Labs. He had gotten bored well over an hour ago, listening to the rogues and the science nerds discuss different things that may or may not stop Allison. 

But that wasn’t what was bothering him. No, it was the fact that Diego was ignoring him that bothered Klaus. Diego, who had come all this way to check on Klaus, who had gone so far as to get arrested, again, had hardly said more than a few words to him in the past few days. 

In all fairness though, Klaus hadn’t exactly been fully focused on Diego. He’d been a bit preoccupied, pretending to flirt with Mick to see if Dr. Snow was interested in him. Klaus, being the ever helpful person that he was, had agreed to help, not because he was bored, and certainly not to see if Diego cared. 

Not that Klaus could judge Diego’s reaction when Diego was ignoring him like this. 

Klaus was about to turn down the hallway that would lead him to the elevators, when he felt someone grip his shoulder. Before he could turn around, before he could even react, Klaus was being slammed against the wall, and was face to face with none other than Diego. 

What the fuck? Klaus thought, wincing at the pain. Diego had a hand around his throat, the other, looking like it was about to reach for a knife. 

“And here I thought Luther was the only one that liked to throw me into walls” Klaus stated. At his words, Diego’s hold on him loosened, if only the slightest amount. 

“And here I thought you weren’t into guys like Mick Rory” Diego countered. And okay, now Klaus was really confused. Diego, who supposedly cared, who had ignored him for days was here to lecture Klaus about his interest in men?

“Is this some kind of overprotective, big brother thing?” Klaus asked. Diego flinched as though he’d been struck. He looked almost ready to turn around and run. Interesting, Klaus thought. 

“Are you here to tell me that you’re looking out for me, and that Mick’s just going to hurt me? 

Well, news flash, Dee, I’m only flirting with Mick so he can see if Caitlin is interested” Klaus told him. Diego let go of him and took a step back. His eyes scanned Klaus’ face, as if he was looking for something. 

Whatever it was, wether or not he found it, Diego turned and began to walk away. But Klaus wasn’t about to let him get away with whatever the hell that had been. 

He grabbed Diego by the arm and turned him back around. They were face to face again, but this time, only mere inches apart. 

 

“Gonna tell me what that was about, Dee?” Klaus asked. Diego wanted to shake his head, wanted to run, but he knew Klaus wouldn’t accept anything but an answer. Not after the stupid stunt he’d pulled. 

“I-I. It’s like you said. I was j-just being a protective b-brother” Diego stuttered, hating how he tripped over his words. Over that word in particular. 

“See, now I know you’re lying, Dee” Klaus answered, leaning in impossibly closer. God, when had he gotten so close? Diego wondered. 

“If you were worried about me, you wouldn’t have been ignoring me, would you?” Klaus asked, not giving Diego any time to answer before he continued. 

“But you still came to talk me out of being with Mick. Because....” Diego could see the exact second it clicked in Klaus’ mind. 

“Oh my god. You were jealous, weren’t you?” Diego didn’t answer, but he knew his silence would be enough. And Diego didn’t have to ask how Klaus felt about that realization, because Klaus drew his hand back, away from Diego. 

God, Diego couldn’t bring himself to look at Klaus, knowing the disgust, disappointment, even anger he would be met with. Head bowed and eyes on the floor, Diego turned, prepared to walk away, but found himself suddenly pressed against the wall. The same wall he had backed Klaus into. 

Diego knew, in theory, that he could get out of this situation without a scratch. Without much effort, even. But that would involve him wanting to. And he did. He wanted to run as far from this situation as he could. Get out of the lab, maybe even out of town. 

But at the same time, he needed to see Klaus’ reaction. Needed to let this play it so he could move on, so he could start getting over the delusion that this would ever-

His thoughts were interrupted by the feeling of a pair of lips brushing against his. Klaus was kissing him. Klaus was kissing him? 

His eyes shot up to Klaus’ face, but Klaus only smiled before moving back in for another kiss. This time, Diego kissed him back. 

He wound his arms around Klaus waist, pulling him in closer. Diego hadn’t thought this would happen. He had always hoped, but after everything in his life being as shitty as it had been up until this point, Diego had never thought he could be this lucky. 

Eventually, reluctantly, Diego pulled back to let Klaus breath. 

“Some of us have lame powers like being able to talk to the dead instead of holding their breath forever” Klaus reminded him. Diego was about to comment on his second, slightly lame power, but Klaus got this excited look in his eyes. 

“Oh my god you must be so good at giving blowjobs” Klaus realized, before bursting out laughing. Diego laughed along with him, and honestly, it was nice. He had never felt so happy. So of course things had to come to a crashing halt. 

“Oh good, there you are” came Cisco’s voice from behind Klaus. They jumped apart, both surprised to have been snuck up on by, well, anyone really. 

“As sorry as I am to interrupt....that” Cisco said, waving his hand back and forth between the two of them “we have a problem. And by a problem, I mean Axel tying up your sister and bringing her here” 

Diego didn’t known Axel well, but he was pretty sure he hated him. If only because he’d interrupted Diego’s time with Klaus. 

Diego sighed, but followed Cisco back to the room where the had been planning how to stop Allison. Klaus was right beside him, and Diego was half tempted to reach out and grab his hand. But they had more important things to worry about. 

When they walked into the room, Diego took a few seconds to assess the situation. All of the tables full of blueprints and calculations had been pushed up against the walls. In the middle of the room, Allison was tied to a chair, with everyone standing around her. 

Had she not been staring at Ben, Diego had a feeling she would be glaring at he and Klaus as they walked in. But well, it had taken him a bit to get over the fact that Ben was, in fact, alive again. 

“Dude, is that a hickey?” Ben asked. Everyone looked up at the two of them, including Allison, and Diego was absolutely certain he was the only one blushing at the comment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And they are finally together! Yay! Honestly I am so bad at writing get togethers... it’s why most of my other stuff is established relationships. Sorry again for how long this took to post. 
> 
> Let me know what you think!


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is mostly dialogue, sorry! But yay Klaus standing up for himself? Let me know what you think!

“Dude, is that a hickey?” Ben asked, as he took in the sight of Klaus and Diego walking into the room. Diego blushed at his words, confirming his theory that the two had finally talked things through. Well, without much of the talking part, he thought with a smile. 

If anything, he was just happy that Allison had stopped glaring at him in favour of looking at Klaus and Diego. But, in Allison’s defence, Ben was standing next to the man that had just kidnapped her. And god wasn’t this just such a mess, Ben thought as everyone’s attention fell back to Allison. 

“What to do with you now?” He heard Len mumble somewhere to his right. Ben knew, or at least hoped that he knew Len wouldn’t kill Allison. 

But Ben was just as upset about her coming after Klaus as everyone was, and even he wanted some sort of punishment. 

He had known Allison all of his life, and afterlife. Had been there for her even if she couldn’t see him.

But Klaus could see him. Could talk to Ben the entire time that the others couldn’t. So whatever familial bond he’d had with her, it had been broken the second she had gone after Klaus. If Ben had had any doubt before now, it was completely shattered by hearing that she had tried to use her powers on Axel. 

“Well, she did come here to talk to me. Why don’t I just have a nice chat with Allison?” Klaus asked, shaking Ben out of his thoughts. 

He looked at Klaus incredulously, wondering what he was planning. He had to be planning something. Klaus had not once been the voice of reason, and was not about to start just because he’d made out with Diego. 

“Unless there’s a way to guarantee that she can’t use her powers, I don’t trust her enough-“ Diego started but Ben interrupted him. 

“Her powers don’t work when she writes” Ben told them. And if looks could kill, the glare Allison was sending him right now would be the second death of him. 

Everyone was looking back and forth apprehensively between Len and Klaus. But Len just shrugged. 

“It’s up to you Klaus. There must be a pen and some paper around here, but you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.” He said. 

 

Klaus looked at Len, trying his best to hide how surprised he was by Len’s words. He still wasn’t used to people letting him make his own decisions. 

“Why don’t we have one last family meeting? Well, the four of us that are here, anyways. Just the four of us” Klaus decided, smiling down at Allison almost maniacally. 

Klaus looked back at Len, who nodded his agreement, approval? Klaus wasn’t sure. 

“Fine, but Barry stays” Len countered, and this time it was Klaus’ turn to nod his agreement. Of all the people who could have stayed, Barry was easily the least intimidating. And, well, not a super villain which probably helped. 

By the time the others had cleared out, Barry had left and returned with some blank paper and a pen. Klaus knew he could have gotten it in less than a second, but he supposed it wouldn’t be good to let Allison in on that particular secret. 

Klaus stayed quiet as Diego untied one of Allison’s hands, attaching the other to the chair, and placed the writing materials in her lap. She was still glaring at the three of them, but picked up the pen. 

Diego took a step back, taking his place next to Klaus, who couldn’t keep a smile off his face. 

The two of them were standing about a foot away from her, Ben and Barry a few feet to their right. They could do nothing but stand there awkwardly while they waited for Allison to finish writing. 

When she was finally done, Klaus snatched the paper from her hands. It only had one sentence written on it. 

“You got kidnaped, and all you want to know is why you can see Ben now?” Klaus asked her. Allison nodded at his question. Yes or no questions made things so much easier, he thought, relieved he wouldn’t have to wait for all of her answers. 

“You can see Ben for he same reason that you can see everyone. He’s alive” Klaus answered honestly. She looked at Klaus incredulously, before turning her attention to Ben, who only shrugged. 

“It’s true. Klaus brought me back” Ben mumbled. He was blushing, though Klaus didn’t know why. 

“I can’t take all the credit, Cisco did help a lot” Klaus said with a wave of his hand. He gave Allison the paper back, and waited for her to write her next question down. 

“Okay, this is much more along the line of questions I was expecting” Klaus commented as he read the next line on the paper. 

“I went back to the academy recently, actually because of Ben. We were having a hard time keeping him here amongst the land of the living, so someone came up with the brilliant idea of using something of Ben’s to ground him.” Klaus explained. Allison rolled her eyes at his dramatics, but let him continue. 

“Dad threw out everything of Ben’s, but you know how dear old dad was, couldn’t let go of his good research samples.” He finished with a smile. 

The rest of her questions involved why Klaus hd run away and joined a group of super villains. 

“Well you see, Barry over here, found me almost passed out on the street- don’t give me that look, I almost got murderer- so he gave me a place to stay, that just happened to be in an apartment building owned by one Leonard Snart, his boyfriend- fiancé, sorry” Klaus explained. 

He had not liked the look Allison had sent him, which had roughly translated to ‘you were almost passed out in an alley, what’s new?’ 

She took back the paper and wrote down one last question. 

“Who the hell is Barry, anyways?” Klaus read. He turned to Barry, figuring it would be better to let him answer. 

Barry took a step towards her, a kind smile on his face, but Klaus knew it was fake. Allison didn’t react, but Klaus could tell that it was taking everything in her not to. 

“My name is Barry Allan. I’m a CSI with the CCPD” that comment got Allison’s attention. “Like Klaus said, I’m Len’s fiancé, but I’m also the Flash” 

And yeah, now Klaus could see why so many people knew Barry’s secret identity. He really needed to get better at not giving that bit of information away so freely. 

“Now” Barry said with a hint of controlled anger Klaus had never heard from him before “I made Len promise, no more murder. But if you come after any of the rogues again, or if I hear you’ve been using your powers, I won’t even have to make an exception” Barry told her. Klaus wasn’t sure if it was a trick of light, but he was almost certain he saw lightning flickering in Barry’s hands. 

Klaus was staring at Barry, mouth open wide in utter shock. He must have learned a thing or two from Captain Cold, was Klaus’ only thought as the others came back into the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I absolutely love morally grey Barry, especially when it comes to protecting people he cares about :) Let me know what you think!


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, this chapter has a new POV (or 2) in it! Honestly love how this turned out even if it’s not very plot heavy :) Let me know what you think!

Vanya was had just gotten back from band practice. She was putting her violin away when she heard the front door of the academy being pushed open and slammed shut in quick succession. 

She was tempted to ignore it. Anger and violence were commonplace at the Umbrella Academy, but this seemed different somehow. 

Vanya rand down the stairs that led from their bedrooms to the entryway. There, standing at the front door, was Allison. 

Wasn’t she off looking for Klaus? Was Vanya’s only thought as she ran towards her sister. 

“Allison, what happened?” She asked as she got closer. She could see tears in Allison’s eyes, and her hands were shaking. She had never known her sister to exhibit such blatant signs of fear. 

“Allison?” Vanya asked a second time when she got no immediate answer. 

Allison just shook her head, and made a swirling motion with her hand. It wasn’t exactly a specific sign, but it meant that it would be easier for her to write things down. 

So Vanya followed her her into the living room. The two of them sat down across from each other on the stupidly uncomfortable, decorative couches.

They had started keeping paper and pens, pencils whatever they could find, in common areas to help Allison communicate with them, so they already had everything they needed on the small table between them. 

Vanya waited patiently as Allison picked up the parer and a pen, and begun writing furiously. 

It was minutes later when Allison handed her the paper. The entire thing was covered in quickly penned words but Vanya could read it. 

‘Klaus had gone and joined a gang of super villains. Diego found him, and seems to have joined them too.’ It read. 

Vanya knew Klaus had found someone. She would be more surprised that the someone was a group of super villains if she didn’t know Klaus. She would also be surprised that Diego had joined them, if she didn’t know how in love he was with Klaus. 

What surprised her though, was the last line, that was so far down, it almost looked like an afterthought. Vanya had no idea how Ben being alive again could be an afterthought.

“How is Ben alive?” She asked. Allison picked up a new piece of paper and quickly wrote down an explanation. Although Vanya had been expecting more of an answer than just ‘Klaus’. 

Allison grabbed the paper back, taking more time to write out what had actually happened this time. 

‘Klaus brought Ben back to life. The superhero there, the Flash, and one of his tech people helped. Klaus came back here, to steal a blood sample to help bring Ben back.’ The note said. 

Vanya’s hands were shaking as she looked back and forth between Allison and the note. 

Vanya needed to tell someone, was the first thought that crossed her mind. Diego must already know, if he was with Klaus. She could tell Five. She should tell Five. And probably Luther too, assuming Allison didn’t tell him first. 

“Ben’s alive” she said, just because she finally could say it. And of course, Five chose that exact moment to appear next to her. 

“What did you just say?” Five asked casually, clearly unconcerned about any conversation he may have interrupted. 

“Ben’s alive” Vanya repeated. Five did not look nearly as surprised as she had felt when she had gotten the news only minutes before. 

“That changes things” he mumbled. Vanya had no idea how Five could be so calm about all of this. 

“Um, apparently Klaus had a bit of help, from the rogues, or the Flash. Or, well, both from the sounds of Allison’s story” Vanya added. Not that Five seemed to care. 

Five was staring at her blankly, and Vanya was honestly getting a bit scared. 

“That sounds more like Klaus. Couldn’t just piss dad off by not doing anything, he had to actively go against anything dad would have wanted” Five mumbled. 

“How are you so calm about this?” She asked him. Had Five known that this would happen? Was this somehow in the calculations he used to get back to them? 

“I spent over fourty years trying to get back to my family. To get back to this. But even if everything went exactly right, which Delores told me it wouldn’t, I never thought I would see Ben again” Five told them. Vanya was pretty sure it was the most honest he had been since coming back. That thought alone made her eyes start to water. 

“Well, I was going to go see him, if you want to come?” She offered, not sure what else to say. 

Vanya could see Allison shaking her head, but that wasn’t going to stop her. Especially not when Five was nodding.

“That would be, nice” he mumbled, making Vanya smile. She hadn’t wanted to go to an unfamiliar city alone, not with her powers still so new to her. She would have, for Ben, but knowing she wouldn’t have to was a relief. 

 

Five still didn’t know what to do with the information. Ben was alive. God, he’d spent so much time mourning him, almost more so than the others in the early days of the apocalypse.

Five had found the rest of his family, dead, buried under the rubble of the academy. But he’d had to find out from reading Vanya’s autobiography that Ben had died years before then. 

So when Five had figured out that the only time he could get back to was after Ben had died, it had honestly broken his heart. It hadn’t seemed fare, that he couldn’t save them all. But now, as it turned out, he hadn’t needed to. 

How anyone ever thought Klaus would amount to nothing still surprised him, Five thought, as he stared back at Vanya’s smiling face. Klaus’ powers were easily the most impressive, and Five could literally jump through space and time. 

Five could honestly say that he was glad Vanya wanted to go see Ben, and had offered to take him with her. Wether or not she had, Five would have gone anyways, but it was like he had said. Nice. 

He’d spent so long trying to get back to his family, that he’d forgotten what it was like to have a family. To be able to spend time with a family. Acidentally time traveling ahead to the apocalypse could do that to you though, he supposed. 

With that thought, he left Vanya and Allison to continue on whatever conversation they had been having. After all, he would need to rework a few calculations before they left. He wanted to make sure that Ben being alive wouldn’t change the possibility of the Commission still existing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I may have cried writing the part for Five, and that wasn’t even supposed to happen. It was just supposed to be a nice, happy, Vanya chapter, but Five just kinda happened.
> 
> Because at some point, Five would have had to come to the conclusion that he couldn’t save Ben, and that is the saddest thing I have ever realized at 8am. 
> 
> Anyways, let me know what you think!


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slightly shorter chapter because I like cliffhangers.... sorry! 
> 
> This chapter is mostly just Klaus being Klaus. Let me know what you think!

When Barry came back, announcing that he had dropped Allison off at the academy, Klaus let out a sigh of relief. He was still a bit in awe of Barry, after he had threatened Allison, but, well, he was engaged to THE Captain Cold. Klaus should have known that would count for something. 

“Did anyone else expect that to go a lot worse?” He heard Axel ask from somewhere across the room. With that comment, Klaus could visibly see the tension leaving the room. 

Hartley was smiling fondly at Axel, and everyone else just seem exasperated by his words. But they all looked to be relieved. Happy, even. 

So Klaus didn’t feel as bad breaking the peaceful silence. 

“On that note, I do believe we were in the middle of something” he said, grabbing Diego’s hand and leading him out of the labs. 

“Klaus, we c-can’t just leave after t-that” Diego argued as Klaus pulled him into the elevator. 

“Sure we can. We just did” Klaus answered. The elevator couldn’t have gotten them to the ground floor fast enough, in Klaus’ opinion. But when it finally did, Diego let Klaus lead him out of the building, all the way to his shitty old car. 

“I honestly don’t know how this thing still runs” Klaus told Diego as he got into the car. Klaus was expecting some kind of a compliment from Diego, but he got none, as Diego sat down and started the car. 

“So.....” Klaus said awkwardly after a few short minutes. No one ever said he had patience. 

“So w-what?” Diego asked, talking his eyes off the road only for a second to glance over at Klaus. 

“Oh, you know. Just thinking about the fact that both of our sisters have tried to kill me now” he said casually. Klaus smirked when he saw Diego’s reaction. His hands clenching on the steering-wheel, looking over at Klaus incredulously. 

“You know Vanya didn’t mean it” he said. And yeah, Klaus did know that. But still, he’d had far too many near death experiences caused by family members. Not that there was a good number of those to have. 

“T-that’s seriously what you’re thinking about?” Diego eventually asked. They had gotten back to the apartment building that Len owned, and in that instant, almost getting killed was the furthest thing from his mind. 

“No” Klaus answered, as he led Diego into the building. “My mind is a bit preoccupied with what happened just before that wonderful part of my night” 

That earned him a small smile from Diego. Klaus could not be happier right now. When they finally got back to Klaus’ apartment, he quickly pulled Diego in for a kiss. 

When Diego pulled back, far too soon for Klaus liking, he had a weird expression on his face. 

“Klaus” he started, but Klaus shook his head. 

“You are not about to tell me this was all just a big mistake, Diego. I won’t let you do that to yourself, or to me” Klaus told him seriously. 

 

Diego sighed. He was thrilled that Klaus seemed as committed to whatever this was as him, and for once in his life, Diego wasn’t running from what he wanted. 

“It’s n-not that. I just wanted t-to apologize” he explained. Klaus was looking at him a bit strangely now, but thankfully, let him continue. 

“I sh-shouldn’t have thrown you a-against the wall like that. I k-know how much you hate that, and even if I was j-jealous, I sh-shouldn’t have-“ Klaus interrupted by pressing his lips against Diego’s. 

“I know you, Diego. I know you have a hard time dealing with emotions, let alone communicating them. And before you say anything, I was by no means making fun of your stutter” Klaus quickly clarified, although Diego knew Klaus would never mock him for that. 

“I know you didn’t want to hurt me, Dee. You were always so careful with how you treated me. God it was frustrating sometimes how much I did want you to grab me, push me against a wall and kiss me. I do enjoy being manhandled. So thank you, for fulfilling that fantasy.” Klaus said with a wink. 

Diego felt torn between crying and finding the nearest wall to push him up against. God, of course Klaus was into that, he thought. That, actually explained why Klaus had reacted differently in the past. 

Diego had, like Klaus said, been generally careful with him. So any of his experiences seeing Klaus react to rough treatment, was the treatment that Luther or Allison had directed at him. So yeah, that definitely made more sense. 

All that aside though, Diego was more than willing to continue kissing Klaus. So he pulled Klaus in for another kiss. 

Klaus let out a surprised squeak, but didn’t pull away. In fact, Diego felt Klaus’ arms wrapping around his waist, pulling them impossibly closer together. Diego’s hands were twisted in Klaus’ hair and he was so tempted to pull on it to see how Klaus would react. 

God, Diego would be embarrassed by how turned on he was getting right now if he couldn’t feel Klaus having a similar reaction. Diego ground their hips together experimentally, and Klaus moaned into the kiss. 

“Should we be moving this to a bed? Or couch, realistically?” Diego heard Klaus ask breathlessly. Diego wanted to. He did. But his answer was cut off by a loud crashing sound right outside the front door of the apartment. 

Diego didn’t even have time to pull away from Klaus before Five and Vanya appeared right in front of them in the living room. Shit, Diego thought. Not only had Allison sent in backup, but they’d found Klaus and Diego in the middle of making out. 

“God damnit. Now that’s just so wrong” Diego heard Five mumble. If his hands weren’t otherwise preoccupied, they would be around Five’s throat right about now, Diego thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m not really sure how well Five’s spacial jumping works, but I’m going to pretend this is even remotely realistic timing wise because of it :) 
> 
> Let me know what you think!


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for how long this took to post, I just kept crying every time I wrote anything in it? Anyways, let me know what you think!

“Five” Diego warned, not wanting him say anything that could ruin whatever this thing with Klaus was before it really started. But Five only rolled his eyes. 

“Not whatever it was the two of you were doing.” Five assured with a wave of his hand. His tone was almost dismissive, and Diego tried not to be too offended by it. 

“I meant the equations I literally just corrected because Ben is alive. God. Now I have to move the twenty sixth decimal over again, ad another four exponents, subtract the average global temperatures of the year 2041....” Five trailed off, leaving Diego so confused about what the hell was going on. 

And then Five’s words finally sunk in. They knew Ben was alive. Diego reluctantly pulled away from Klaus with a sigh.

“Allison mentioned that Ben was alive, and, well, we just really wanted to see him.” Vanya explained. Diego swore he could see a tear in her eye. 

“I’m sorry. We probably should have called or something before just showing up unannounced. Especially after whatever Allison tried-“

“Hey, no. None of that” Klaus interrupted her. “You are as much his family as we are. You have every right to see Ben too” 

Diego nodded his agreement, not sure he could trust his voice right now. Vanya smiled at them, despite the tears that were now flowing down her face. 

“I just have to make a few calls to make sure everyone is actually back, but after that we can show you where Ben is, okay?” Klaus offered, and Vanya nodded.

And yeah, now that Diego thought of it, they had kind of left the others back at the lab. Not that he regretted it. 

 

“Ben?” He heard Roy call from the kitchen. Why was Roy in the kitchen? He wondered, as he followed the smell of burnt, well, he wasn’t quite sure what Roy had managed to burn this time. 

He found Roy leaning against the kitchen counter next to the stove, seemingly unconcerned by the harsh smell. Although smells were something else Ben was still getting used to again. 

“What poor food did you destroy this time?” He asked cautiously.

“That’s not what-oh shit!” Ben watched Roy’s eyes widen comically as he seemed to remember that he had left something on. 

Ben smiled as he watched Roy try not to burn himself while making sure the food, chicken by the looks of it, didn’t catch fire. He would probably be more concerned if this wasn’t such a regular occurrence. 

Once the stove was safely turned off and the chicken disposed of, Roy turned back to him, and still looked just as serious. 

“What’s wrong?” Ben asked before he could stop himself. 

“Klaus and Diego are coming over. Apparently Five and Vanya are with them” Roy told him, just as a knock on the door came. Shit, Ben thought. 

He knew Vanya would be fine. She, more than anyone could understand why Klaus had joined the rogues, and how Ben and Diego, by association, had too. 

But Five was honestly a wildcard. Ben had no idea how he would react to any of this. 

He followed Roy to the front door and could do nothing but stand there awkwardly as his four siblings filtered into the small apartment. 

Ben was expecting the hug that came from Vanya, even expecting her tears. She had always been the most emotional of them all. Ben let the hug go on longer than probably expected, but eventually did pull away from a teary but smiling Vanya. 

But what he was not expecting , was for Five to be standing still next to Diego with tears streaming down his face silently. Ben couldn’t remember having seen him cry. Ever. 

“Five?” He asked, not sure what to do. Everyone was starting to look at Five a bit strangely now.

“I’m so fucking sorry Ben” Five sobbed. “I couldn’t go back far enough”. 

If anyone asked, Ben couldn’t tell them who hugged the other first, but he wanted to say it was him. It was an awkward hug, since Five still looked like a twelve year old, but Ben didn’t want to let him go. Because holy shit. He’d never thought about that. About when Five could have gone back in time. 

Ben had always been grateful beyond words that Five had been able to come back and save the others. Been able to save the world. But Five, somehow, blamed himself for not being able to save Ben? 

“It’s not your fault. God, tell me you don’t blame yourself for that?” He asked, and by now Ben was definitely crying too. He almost sobbed when Five didn’t answer, which was answer enough to his questing. 

“It was never your fault. I tried to call on more of Them and I lost control, and, and god please don’t blame yourself. I’m alive now, and that’s what matters. Please, please don’t feel guilty about it” Ben told him. It was probably the most Ben had ever said about his death, and he felt Five’s embrace tighten as a result. 

“I felt so awful. I could save the world, but I couldn’t even save my own brother. But I didn’t know if I’d ever be in an other time in history where I could get back to now” Five explained, as he slowly began to pull away. 

“I don’t blame you for not being able to save me, Five. You saved everyone else, and that’s what matters. I’m happy I’m alive again, but I would never have held it against you, even if Klaus wasn’t able to bring me back” Ben said. 

He was going to continue, to make sure Five understood that Ben didn't blame him for anything, but Klaus cleared his throat somewhere behind Five. 

“As touching as this all was” Klaus started, earning himself a smack on the arm from Diego and a glare from both Roy and Vanya. 

“Len and Barry are on their way to talk. I think they’re bringing Mick” he informed everyone. 

Ben sighed. Why did they have to bring Mick? As much as Ben enjoys talking to him, he could look pretty intimidating to anyone that didn’t know him, and Five tended to react badly to threats. 

“And I thought one fire in my apartment was enough for the night” mumbled, trying to ease some of the tension that had started to build at Klaus’ words. 

Klaus and Diego laughed, probably because the burnt chicken from earlier could still be smelled, even after Roy had taken it off the stove. 

Roy mumbled a protest about having been distracted, but didn’t deny his cooking mishap from earlier. That was a start, Ben thought with a smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So.... yeah, I cried so many times. I feel so bad for Five, and Ben. And Vanya being insecure! In my notes, this chapter was just called ‘lots of crying’ and I’m not sure if I meant for me or the characters, but it was definitely both! 
> 
> I do also enjoy writing Roy as a terrible cook. It’s my favourite random character trait so far. 
> 
> Let me know what you think!


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo sorry for how long this took to post! It’s mostly just dialogue with a bit of set up of plot progression, sorry! I'm still not happy with how this turned out, but at least it’s done? 
> 
> Let me know what you think!

Mick Rory was tired. It had been a long day of dealing with Allison Hargreeves, and then dealing with Snart being mad about Barry telling yet another person his secret identity. He knew Snart was just mad because he cared about Barry and wanted to protect him, but still.

Mick was definitely not happy to have been asked to go along with the two to meet even more of the Hargreeves. He liked Klaus and Ben, and even Diego well enough. But when he’d been in the future, the other two, Five and Vanya, hadn’t been there.

God, had he messed up the timeline by just mentioning that Ben was alive? He wondered, as they arrived at the apartment building the rogues lived in.

The three of them made their way to Roy and Ben’s shared apartment, and so far, he hadn’t heard any yelling, which was probably a good thing. Probably. 

He also noticed the slight smell of something burnt while they approached the door at the end of the hallway. It was probably just another one of Roy’s cooking attempts, his mind supplied helpfully. Based on the underlying scent of burnt chicken coming from the apartment in front of them, that was definitely the case, Mick thought as he pushed he door open. 

Whatever Mick was expecting to see inside, it definitely wasn’t this. Ben was kneeling down next to a kid, who looked no older than twelve. Beside them was a girl that looked to be around the same age as Ben and the other Hargreeves. Vanya, his mind supplied. All three of them looked as though they had been crying.

Klaus, Diego and Roy were a bit further back, looking about as awkward as Mick felt in that moment.

Whatever awkwardness he was feeling, quickly turned to shock as the kid produced a hand gun and started shooting at he and Len until he had discharged the entire round. Nothing hit either of them, thanks to Barry, who looked equally as shocked that he’d just had to stop a kid from killing them.

“What the fuck, Five?” Klaus yelled from behind him, as if he’d read Mick’s mind. Although, he thought, if the kid was one of the Hargreeves, number Five to be exact, it would at least explain why the kid was here.

“They shouldn’t be here” the kid, Five, answered, waving the now unloaded gun between he and Len.

“I own the building and don’t remember giving you any of the access codes, so try again, kid” Len told him. His voice was even, but Mick knew that just meant he was pissed. It’s the voice Len used when trying not to react like they both knew Lewis would have. 

“I’ve seen both of you before, in Boston” he started. That was no reason to shoot at someone Mick thought, but the kid continued.

“If I remember correctly, you were throwing crates of tea into the harbour” Five added. And okay, yeah, Mick might have shot at someone now too, if he remembered seeing them at the Boston Tea Party. But he didn’t remember seeing this kid there, or then, or whatever.

“So clearly, you both work for the Commission. I thought I’d found a way of making sure they ceased to exist, but obviously not if-“ Five rant was cut off by Mick’s maniacal laughter.

Everyone was staring at him, especially Len, who tensed, probably because he knew where this was going.

“Not the Commission, kid. You seriously think they’re the only ones messing with time?” Mick asked.

When he’d worked for the time masters, as Cronos, they had told him all about the Commission. But apparently the opposite wasn’t also true. The kid...Five, who wasn’t actually a kid if Mick remembered correctly, hesitated. 

“I... suppose that could be possible. It would actually explain quite a bit of my math not working” he admitted. 

“You seriously never heard of the time masters or the legends?” Mick asked. He stills wasn’t sure how the Commission could operate without telling its employees about them.

But Five shook his head, and Mick felt bad for him, he really did. They had both been time traveling bounty hunters, not that Mick had had any choice in the matter, but at least he’d been told about their competing organizations.

 

Five shook head head, the empty gun in his hand still pointed at the two time travellers in front of him. His hands were still shaking. 

He didn’t want to admit that he had heard of the time masters, but more specifically, of their ruthless personal bounty hunter, Cronos. They had all been myths at the time, but if the time masters existed, then their henchman that had killed without hesitation must as well. 

“So you work for the time masters?” He asked. Five wasn’t really sure how to feel about that possibility or probability, at this point. But both of the men he’d seen in Boston shook their heads.

The larger of the two, who had scars that appeared to be the result of a fire, stepped forward. 

“The time masters don’t exist anymore, we made sure of that. As for working for them, I did, for a bit. 

They took me, brainwashed me, and turned me into their weapon. They pointed me at a target, and I did whatever they told me to do.” He explained, and Five felt, for the first time in a long time, sympathy. He knew what it was like, to be used like that.

“Worst part is, they don’t want you to even remember anything form before, so they give you a new name. If you haven’t heard of the time masters, then you haven’t heard of Cronos, but that was-“ Five didn’t feel slightly bad for interrupting him, or for having shot at him earlier.

“You’re Cronos?” He asked, wishing more than anything that he’d brought more than one weapon.

The man in front of him, Cronos, was about to answer, but the other time traveler spoke up first.

“Children, why don’t we all sit down. I think it would be good to have story time now, don’t you?” He asked, his voice dripping in sarcasm. 

“I love story time!” Klaus announced excitedly from somewhere behind him, reminding Five of the rest of his family’s presence.


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... here’s a short, very angsty chapter, that’s only a bit plot progression, but oh well! Let me know what you think!

Barry listened attentively as Len explained to Five and, well, everyone really, what had happened. He did not care as much as he probably should for Five’s explanation of what he’d endured. He was too stuck on some of the horrors of Len’s story. 

Barry had always known that what Len and Mick did with the Legends was dangerous, but he hadn’t known how close it had come for Len with the time masters. How close he had been to losing the most important person in his life. 

When Len was done detailing their experiences in time travel, Barry whisked his fiancé away to the comfort of their own bed. 

“Len, you never told me how close you were to dying while you were with the legends” Barry stated once they were settled comfortably next to each other. He felt Len tense next to him, before taking a deep breath. 

“It wasn’t a close call” Len answered, and Barry wasn’t sure what to think of the strain in his voice, or the fact that Len wouldn’t meet his eyes. 

“What.... what happened?” Barry asked. His mind was running wild with all sorts of different possibilities. All sorts of ways in which Len could have almost died. He shuddered at the thought. 

“I died” Len said, as if it were the simplest thing in the world. He’d died. God, Barry had lost him, and hadn’t even known until now. He could feel the tears streaming down his face at their own accord. 

He reached out and ran his hand down Len’s chest, if only to reassure himself that Len was here, that he was alive. His hand settled over Len’s beating heart, and it was the most calming thing Barry had ever felt, despite the long, healed scar where Barry’s fingers rested.

“I don’t... how... what happened?” Barry asked. He wanted to ask so many questions but didn’t know which to ask first. 

“Someone needed to stay behind when we blew up the time masters. I couldn’t let it be Mick” Len told him. Barry could hear the pain in his voice, and he could see that Len was still struggling with the decision he’d made. 

The decision save Mick would have been easy, he thought, but it also meant leaving Lisa, and everyone else he cared about. Barry didn’t want to think about how he had factored into that decision. 

“Well, you promised not to leave me” Barry said, almost stubbornly, and Len let out a small laugh at the comment. 

“And you promised never to step between me and a loaded gun” Len countered, and now it was Barry’s turn to laugh. 

“Well, I don’t think Five will be shooting at you again any time soon” Barry told him. He was happy that Five had seen reason, and that he and Vanya had agreed to stay in an apartment a few doors down from them to be able to spend time with Ben. 

Barry leaned forward and kissed Len, wrapping his arms around him and pulling him close. 

“I love you” Barry gasped between kisses. He could feel Len smiling into the kiss. 

“I love you too” he heard Len say, far too composed for Barry liking. He would have to do something about that, he thought, as he climbed onto Len’s lap. 

 

What Len had described as ‘story time’ had gone on far too long. Klaus could see how bored Diego was getting, and honestly, he was too. 

He was getting antsy about getting back to his apartment, probably with Diego. Probably. He still wasn’t sure exactly what this thing between them was. 

Very physical, that was for sure. Klaus had absolutely loved how physical Diego had been with him, but wasn’t sure if it was anything beyond that. 

Klaus knew they both had issues in their past, most being the result of the academy and Sir Reginald, but Klaus’ addiction or recovery wasn’t exactly the best thing to bring into a newly developing relationship. If Diego even wanted a relationship. Which Klaus wasn’t exactly confident about at this point. 

Damn, Klaus thought, as he followed Diego towards his apartment. Why would Diego possibly want anything involving feelings and emotions with Klaus? Especially with Diego’s cop, sort of ex-girlfriend still, well, Klaus wasn’t exactly sure where she’s gone. 

But if this was just a physical thing for Diego, Klaus knew that he would give Diego everything he wanted. But that wouldn’t stop Klaus from wanting more. 

By the time they were both crawling into the same bed, Klaus had mentally prepared himself for the possibility, probability, he corrected himself, that once again, Klaus Hargreeves would not get what he wanted.

That way it was easier to remind himself that the whispered ‘I love you’ he heard on the verge of falling asleep was definitely just his still muddled mind supplying him with what he wanted to hear, and not actually Diego. But the surprisingly soft, warm arm that reached out and wound itself around Klaus’ waist only made him want it to have been real even more.


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Um.... well, this wasn’t supposed to get fixed so quickly, but yay Ben? There was supposed to be at least another chapter of angst from Klaus, but I’m happy with this too :) let me know what you think!

It had been a few days since Diego and Klaus had talked, and things had changed. Klaus seemed much more comfortable with physical contact, even initiating it most times. Light touches and kissed during the day, the mind blowing sex at night. 

Despite all that, Diego noticed how unchanged things were otherwise. Diego had never liked to admit that he was an emotional person, but he was. And for Klaus to act as if nothing had changed, emotionally at least, well, it hurt. 

Diego had tried to bring it up. More than once. But Klaus could be stubborn when he wanted to, and had managed to change the subject every time. 

So Diego went to the only person who knew Klaus almost better than he knew himself. Ben. 

He was standing awkwardly out front of Ben and Roy’s apartment door, almost feeling bad that he had to go to Ben with his problems. Ben has been alive for what, a week now? Two at most? He didn’t need to deal with Diego’s problems on top of readjusting to life. 

He was ready to turn around and leave, but the door opened before he got the chance. Ben had taken one step out the door when he saw Diego and sighed.

“Come in. I’ll just tell Roy to get the groceries” Ben said and Diego was surprised at the lack of annoyance in Ben’s voice. 

“I, I was j-just leaving” Diego tried to explain but Ben was having none of it. 

“Don’t feel like you can’t talk to me Dee. I spent years only being able to talk to Klaus, and he didn’t even listen to most of what I had to say. Now that I’m alive, I want to spend time with my family. I want to be able to help my family.” Ben said. 

Diego didn’t need to be told who exactly was included in Ben’s definition of family, he thought, as he followed Ben into the apartment. 

Once Roy had left, a very detailed grocery list in hand and a promise to pay for the groceries this time, Diego settled next to Ben on the couch. Ben was looking at him expectantly, but Diego saw no judgement in his eyes. 

“Why don’t you tell me what’s been bothering you?” Ben asked. 

“It’s K-Klaus” Diego started and Ben sighed, seemingly not surprised by the revelation. 

“It’s, we’re... s-something” He stuttered “But I d-don’t know if Klaus wants the same t-thing” he said. Diego could feel tears starting to gather in the corners of his eyes. He looked away, not wanting to show such an obvious sign of weakness. 

“What do you want?” Ben asked, his voice still full of the care and patience Diego remember from their childhood. God, Diego couldn’t even fathom how much he had missed Ben over the years, especially in moments like this. 

“I’m in love with him” he said, steadily and without hesitation. He focused back on Ben, almost afraid of his answer. But Ben was smiling, so it couldn’t be too bad, he tried to reason with himself. 

“And what do you think Klaus wants?” Ben asked him. 

“I-I’m not sure. I think, I think just sex. I t-tried to talk to him about it, but.....” he trailed off. 

“Klaus has been changing the subject every time you brought it up?” Ben filled in for him, and Diego nodded. 

“Have you tried a less, all or nothing approach?” Ben asked. Diego looked at him quizzically. He had no idea what Ben meant. 

“Instead of asking about relationships and happily ever afters and all that, have you tried just asking him out on a date?” Ben clarified. And now Diego felt like an idiot, but Ben kept going. 

“Klaus has some pretty bad self esteem issues and after everything he’s been through, he has a hard time believing in love. He’s used to people only wanting sex as a best case scenario. The only person he ever let himself love, despite all of that, died right in front of him. 

So if he’s hesitant to talk about it, it just means he’s scared that he can’t have it. He loves you too, Diego, he just doesn’t think he deserves it.” Ben told him. 

 

‘He just doesn’t think he deserves it’. Those words were echoing through Diego’s mind as he made his way to Saints and Sinners. The bar didn’t open for another few hours, but Klaus was there helping with the setup. 

Diego pushed through the doors, determined to see Klaus, to make him understand that whatever they may or may not deserve after all the shit they’d been through, Klaus could have this. If he wanted, Diego reminded himself. 

“Fuck off, we’re clos- oh, hi Diego” Axel greeted from behind the bar. “Klaus is in the storage room downstairs” Diego nodded his thanks, and made his way down. 

At the bottom of the stair was a door with a padlock far too complex for a bar. Diego figured it had more to do with the escape tunnels than the beer stock. Not that it mattered right now. 

He took a deep breath and pushed the door open. Inside, was a decently large room. On his left, the wall was lined with fridges , all labeled with their contents. On the right, shelves full of extra glasses. And Klaus, for all his agility and coordination, was in the middle of the room, sweeping up what looked like at least two broken glasses. 

“Klaus” he called out, not wanting to scare him. Klaus spun towards him, raising the broom as if to use it as a weapon. When he saw Diego though, he lowered the broom and let out a sigh of relief. 

“Hey Dee, what brings you to my humble place of work?” He asked, a crooked smirk on his face. 

“When are you done your shift?” Diego asked in place of an answer. Klaus’ smile only grew, as he answered. 

“As soon as I’m done cleaning this up” Klaus said, gesturing to the glass just behind him. 

“Why? Hoping to get me off after I get off?” Klaus asked and Diego groaned. Len, for all that he had done for them, was a terrible influence when it can to puns. 

“I wanted to know if you’d go out with me tonight? Like a d-date?” Diego asked. He cringed internally at the way he stuttered over the word. 

The smirk on Klaus’ face vanished, and for brief, fleeting moment, Diego was worried he’d ruined whatever there was between them. But then Klaus was smiling, a genuine, heartwarming smile and Diego was relieved. 

“What did you have in mind?” Klaus asked and now it was Diego’s turn to smile. 

“I have a few ideas” he answered, taking a step towards Klaus. “Why don’t you finish up here, and I’ll tell you”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There has been a sad lack of Axel Walker in this recently, so I gave him a small appearance in this. 
> 
> But yay! A date! What do you guys think they should do for their first date? (Please help I actually have no idea) 
> 
> Thanks again for reading! Let me know what you think!


End file.
